Oil prices surge after surprise cuts in production

LONDON: Oil prices have surged after several of the world's largest oil exporters announced surprise cuts in production.

The price of Brent crude oil was trading above $84 a barrel in Asia after jumping by more than $4, or 5 per cent, the BBC reported.

The increase came after Saudi Arabia, Iraq and several Gulf states said on Sunday they were cutting output by more than one million barrels a day.

Oil prices soared when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, but are now back at levels seen before the war began.

However, the US has been calling for producers to increase output in order to push energy prices lower.

High energy and fuel prices last year helped to drive up inflation - the rate at which prices rise - putting pressure on many households' finances.

The reduction in output is being made by members of the OPEC+ oil producers. The group accounts for about 40 per cent of all the world's crude oil output, the BBC reported.

Saudi Arabia is reducing output by 500,000 barrels per day and Iraq by 211,000. The UAE, Kuwait, Algeria and Oman are also making cuts.

A Saudi energy ministry official said the move was "a precautionary measure aimed at supporting the stability of the oil market", the official Saudi Press Agency said.

Nathan Piper, an independent oil analyst said the move by OPEC+ appeared to be an attempt to keep the oil price above $80 a barrel in the medium term, given that demand could be hit by a weakening global economy and sanctions have had a "limited impact" on restricting Russian oil supplies, the BBC reported.