Tuesday, 14 Apr 2020 07:29 AM MYT
The oil market has barely shrugged, however: Brent crude gained 1.5 per cent yesterday, while US crude ended the day lower. The move underscores what both investors and producers already understand ― that the monumental deal to cut supply in face of a 30 per cent drop in demand could only accomplish so much initially.
Other major producers like the United States and Canada gave indirect commitments to cuts as well, playing up forecasts for drastic production declines in coming months due to the free-fall in prices. Big producers such as Canada, Norway and the United States have yet to commit publicly to fixed quotas. However, US shale output, which accounts for about 75 per cent of overall US crude production, is expected to drop by nearly 400,000 bpd by May, the US Energy Department said yesterday.