OPEC+ to boost oil production by 548,000 barrels per day in August

Key Points

• Eight OPEC+ members, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, will boost output by 548,000 barrels per day in August.
• The increase aligns with a December plan to gradually raise production by 2.2 million barrels per day over an 18-month period ending in fall 2026.
• They cited a steady global economic outlook and low oil inventories as the rationale for the August boost.
• Oil prices, which spiked during the Israel-Iran conflict, have since tumbled after a U.S.-brokered peace deal, and higher supply could further reduce gas costs.

NEW YORK (AP) — Eight members of the OPEC+ alliance of oil exporting countries say they will boost production by 548,000 barrels per day in August in a move that could further reduce gas prices this year.

The group that includes Saudi Arabia and Russia made the decision at a virtual meeting Saturday. They cited a “steady global economic outlook" and low oil inventories.

Oil prices spiked sharply last month during the bloody, 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran but then tumbled back down as the U.S. helped broker a peace deal after dropping bombs on three of Iran’s key nuclear sites.

Saudi Arabia holds significant influence in OPEC+ as the dominant member of the OPEC producers’ cartel, and Russia is the leading non-OPEC member in the 22-country alliance.

Along with Saudi Arabia and Russia, the group that met Saturday is made up of Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman.

A statement said the new measures were in accordance with a December decision to put off increasing production at that time, but gradually increase it by 2.2 million barrels per day over an 18-month period starting in April and ending in fall 2026. The delayed ramp up reflected weaker-than-expected demand and competing production from non-allied countries.