������ý

OPEC and its allies don’t want crude prices to climb to $100 a barrel, and are reviving production quickly enough to prevent global markets from “overheating,” Oman’s oil minister said.

OPEC and its allies will proceed with their next oil-production hike, but said they could revisit the decision at any moment as the risk to demand from the omicron variant of COVID-19 becomes clearer.

President Joe Biden on Nov. 23 ordered 50 million barrels of oil released from the nation’s strategic reserve to help bring down energy costs, in coordination with other major energy consuming nations, including China, India and the United Kingdom.

OPEC and its allies will stick to their slow pace of oil-production increases, disregarding President Joe Biden’s demand to go faster.

FRANKFURT, Germany — Oil prices jumped after OPEC and allied oil producing countries stayed with their gradual approach to restoring output slashed during the pandemic, agreeing to add only 400,000 barrels per day in November.

OPEC and its allies can likely continue reviving oil production, two key Middle East members said as the group prepares to consider its next supply hike.

OPEC and its allies are expected to press on with their planned revival of oil production when they meet next week, as prices bounce back from their August stumble.

Oil rose to the highest price in more than 2 1/2 years as prospects of an imminent flood of crude exports from Iran and other major producers waned while the International Energy Agency warned of a deepening supply crunch.

Biden administration officials are “encouraged” by ongoing OPEC talks and have spoken with officials in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in hopes of reaching an agreement to stem the rise in crude prices, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.

OPEC+ infighting has deprived the oil market of extra supply and sent crude surging to a six-year high in New York.