Oil prices fall as Saudi Arabia, Russia postpone meeting

Oil prices fell today after Saudi Arabia and Russia postponed a meeting to discuss production cuts that might help reduce oversupply in global markets.

This comes at a time of declining demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Earlier, Brent crude fell to nearly $30 a barrel, but it reduced its losses to a decrease of 24 cents, or 0.7 per cent, levelling out at $33.87 a barrel by 06:39 GMT.

READ: Putin says Russia agrees on oil output cuts, blames Saudis for low prices

US West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 41 cents, or 1.5 per cent, to $27.93 a barrel, after a session in which it was traded at a lower price of $25.28.

US President Donald Trump yesterday said he would be willing to impose a tax on foreign oil should Saudi Arabia and Russia fail to reach a settlement in their dispute in cutting oil production which has contributed to the global collapse in energy prices.

Trump has urged the rival oil producers to cut production by as much as 15 million barrels a day, Russia has said it is willing to cut 10 million barrels a day as part of a global production-cut agreement that includes the US, however as Radio Free Europe points out, unlike Russia and Saudi, whose oil industries are largely state-owned, the American oil industry is comprised of private companies, with the federal government having little say over oil output.

Coronavirus and the oil [Cartoon/Arabi21]