White House reiterates calls for OPEC to do more on oil prices

A US official said yesterday that the White House stands by its calls for oil-producing countries to “do more” to support the global economic recovery, as crude prices recorded their highest levels in years, Reuters reported.

The official said the administration was closely monitoring the cost of oil and gasoline and “using every tool at our disposal to address anti-competitive practices in US and global energy markets to ensure reliable and stable energy markets.”

According to the unnamed official, the administration raised the concern at a senior level with several members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, known as OPEC+.

Benchmark Brent has reached a level not seen since 2018, while US crude prices reached high levels since 2014 due to a number of factors including the recovery of demand around the world at a faster rate than expected, and high natural gas prices which motivated some countries to shift to oil instead of gas to generate electricity.

Meanwhile, OPEC+ has maintained restrictions on supplies since the beginning of the pandemic.

READ: The OPEC+ ministerial panel decides to follow oil output pact