Saudi says OPEC+ is dealing with market uncertainty

Saudi Arabia and its OPEC+ allies are trying to combat “uncertainty and sentiment” in the oil market, the Saudi energy minister said on Sunday, as the group seeks to address short sellers,media reported. The Saudi oil minister said they think the spot market is telling them something and the futures market is telling them something else and that’s why they’ve been taking these precautions. Many energy analysts, as well as OPEC, expect the oil market to tighten in the second half of the year as demand from China and India picks up further. But many traders said high interest rates and weak economies in the U.S. and Europe will weigh on prices for at least the rest of the year. The key to understanding the current OPEC+ policy is to be proactive, pre-emptive and preventive, according to the Saudi Oil Minister. He also said that countries that invest in boosting oil production will get higher production allocations.