Despite the US pressure, the OPEC+ will not immediately increase the supply of crude

The Middle Supervision Committee (JMMC) of the OPEC+chaired by Saudi and Russia Arabia, he decided on Monday to maintain his plan to gradually increase the supply of crude from April, despite the request of the president of USA, Donald Trump, to immediately reduce oil prices.

The Committee decided not to recommend an immediate increase in the offer, so the plan to return to the market in 18 months a total of 2.2 million barrels daily (MBD), which eight producers -Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq , United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman- voluntarily withdrew in 2023.

The JMMC meeting, in charge of supervising compliance with the agreements within the OPEC+, the OPEC countries plus another ten major producers, took place in a context of tensions and volatility in the energy markets, promoted by the commercial war initiated by USA with the imposition of tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China.

In his game by videoconference on February 23 at the Davos forum, Trump announced that he was going to ask OPEC and Saudi Arabia, the group leader, to lower the price of oil, something that can be achieved by increasing production.

The committee indicated in a statement that the states “reaffirmed their commitment” to the decisions taken at the ministerial meeting of the OPEC and his allies on December 5.

At that meeting the oil group postponed again, for the third time, the date of gradual increase of its offer, placing it on April 1, 2025, and extended the deadline to return those 2.2 MBD of reduction to the market for 12 to 18 months volunteer

OPEC+ then justified the postponement of the bearish pressure on oil prices due to the weakening of demand in China and the increase in the supply of USA.

In the decision to leave things as they are now it seems to take into account the effect of the possible commercial war unleashed by Trump, which can lead to a reduction in global growth forecasts and a weakening of the global oil demand.

The JMMC is limited to making recommendations, while the decisions are taken in the plenary ministerial meetings of the OPEC+, but since the committee presided over by Saudi and Russia Arabia, the two greatest producers, their decisions have a lot of weight.