Oil Prices Jump on Calls for More OPEC Production Cuts

Oil rose on Friday after Saudi Arabia and Russia, two of the world’s biggest producers, called for further reductions in output in the coming months.

The two countries are voluntarily curtailing their production to limit global crude supplies. A meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries this month ended with members agreeing to limit output by 2.2 million barrels a day, though some countries wanted to see their quotas moved higher.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed 2% to $75.55 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. standard, was also up 2% at $70.71 a barrel.

Friday’s gains weren’t enough to prevent a weekly loss for oil, which is down about 5% over the past five days. One concern is that the global economy is weakening, denting energy demand, after almost two years of steep interest-rate increases. The U.S., which isn’t a part of OPEC, has also managed to increase its production to a record 13 million barrels a day.

Read more at Barron's