The world’s third-largest oil importer, India, is concerned that Thursday’s decision by OPEC + not to lift oil production in April could hurt the recovery in consumer-driven oil demand. say Indian Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday.
“As one of the largest countries consuming crude, India is concerned that these actions by producing countries have the potential to undermine consumer-driven recovery and therefore harm consumers, especially in our sensitive market at prices, “Pradhan told Reuters.
On Thursday, the OPEC + group shocked the market by deciding not to lift collective crude oil production from April, leaving only small exemptions in Russia and Kazakhstan, as it did at the January meeting.
So, starting in April, the alliance will not only keep production unchanged, with the exception that Russia will increase production by 130,000 bpd and Kazakhstan by 20,000 bpd, but Saudi Arabia will also maintain its extra reduction. of one million bpd April, further tightening the market.
OPEC + ‘s surprise move pushed up the price of oil by 5% on Thursday, with Brent approaching $ 68 and WTI Crude well above $ 64 a barrel.
India, which is dependent on imports for around 80 per cent of its oil consumption, has been uneasy at higher oil prices in recent weeks, raising the bill for oil imports and domestic inflation.
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Earlier this week, India again called on the OPEC + group to boost production, saying it does not support “artificial cuts to keep prices up.”
As oil prices rose to a 13-month high, India began asking OPEC + in January to consider the effects of higher oil prices on oil consumption. economies in recovery.
During last year’s falling oil price, India exceeded its strategic oil reserves with oil at $ 19 a barrel, saving nearly $ 700 million, he said. in September 2020 the Ministry of Oil and Natural Gas of India.
Oil above $ 60 is certainly painful for the import bill and consumers in India and could undermine the recovery of one of the world’s most important markets driving oil demand.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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