Trump blamed OPEC, Russia, and Saudi Arabia for High Oil Prices

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The U.S President Donald Trump alleged the OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) for high crude prices. He called on it to boost output to decrease fuel costs prior to the U.S congressional elections scheduled on Nov 6. The deal mentions how Russia and Saudi Arabia are secretly deciding oil output policies bilaterally without consulting to the other OPEC members.

 The sources said Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih and his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak were agreed during various meetings to lift output from September through December as crude headed towards $80 a barrel. The current price is over $85. The Russians and the Saudis agreed to add barrels to the market quietly with a view not to look like they are acting on Trump’s order to pump more.

The Saudi minister said; Saudi Arabia will raise output if its customers asked for more oil. Actually, both countries had hoped to declare an overall increase of 500,000 barrels per day from Saudi-led OPEC and non-OPEC Russia at a gathering of oil ministers in Algiers at the end of September. It is noteworthy; Russia and Saudi Arabia struck a private deal in September to raise oil output to cool rising prices and informed the United States before a meeting in Algiers with other producers.

Falih and Novak discussed announced a 500,000 barrels per day increase at the Sept. 23 Algiers meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC countries. The plan didn’t materialize with any formal decision deferred until a regular OPEC meeting in Vienna scheduled on Dec 6. A Saudi official said that Saudi Arabia isn’t going to flood the market and risk a price crash. Saudi Arabia has to work with other producers and finding who is raising exports and to which market.