In Brief : Gulf States Tighten Tap on Oil Flow
Gulf states generally turned oil taps lower in early January to comply with an OPEC pact aimed at boosting prices by trimming output nearly 20%, Gulf oil industry sources said today.
They said Saudi Arabia, the biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, slashed output to 3.6 million barrels a day in the week ended Jan. 8 from 7.4 million the week before.
The lower production easily meets the kingdom’s new daily quota of 4.524 million barrels which went into effect Jan. 1.
“It seems there has been a general downward trend in output in the Gulf in the first week as all states intend to abide by the (OPEC output) agreement,” an oil industry analyst said.
It was not known if Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have lowered output to their respective quotas of 1.037 million and 988,000 barrels a day, oil industry sources in the Gulf said. But both states have reduced output from December levels, the sources said.
The 13 members of OPEC agreed in November to cut output to 18.5 million barrels a day in the first half of 1989. OPEC output in December was estimated at 22.76 million barrels a day, according to a Reuters survey.
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