OPEC+ set to keep oil output pause for March as prices jump

LONDON: OPEC+ is likely to keep its pause on oil output increases for March when it meets on Sunday, five delegates told Reuters, even as crude climbs above $70 a barrel on concern the US could launch a military strike on OPEC member Iran, Reuters reported.

The meeting of eight OPEC+ members comes as Brent crude has risen to almost $72 a barrel, its highest since August, despite speculation that a supply glut would push prices down.

The eight producers - Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Iraq, Algeria and Oman - raised production quotas by about 2.9 million barrels per day from April through December 2025, roughly 3 per cent of global

demand.

They then froze further planned increases for January through March 2026 because of seasonally weaker consumption.

Three of the five OPEC+ delegates said Sunday’s meeting was unlikely to take any decisions beyond March.

Also on Sunday, a separate OPEC+ panel called the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) is scheduled to meet, delegates said. The JMMC does not have decision-making authority on production policy.