After managing to revive oil prices through production cutbacks, Opec now risks squandering its victory again by letting crude surge too high.
In the first quarter, coordinated production curbs by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies helped oil rally the most in almost a decade, restoring prices to over $70 a barrel.
Saudi Arabia, the group’s most powerful member, has made clear that it’s determined to keep supplies tight. That risks a repeat of 2018, when production cuts propelled oil to a four-year high, provoking a backlash from President Donald Trump and a hasty reversal by the kingdom. “It appears that the producer group is over-tightening the market,” said Ed Morse, head of commodities research at Citigroup Inc. in New York.
