OPEC’s View of Oil Market Darkens While Gulf States Cut Deeper - Bloomberg

OPEC’s View of Oil Market Darkens While Gulf States Cut Deeper - Bloomberg:

OPEC presented a bleaker assessment of global oil markets for the second quarter as the coronavirus crisis continues to drain demand, days after some of the cartel’s biggest producers pledged to make even deeper production cutbacks.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cut estimates for the amount of crude it will need to supply over the three-month period by just under 3 million barrels a day, or about 15%, in a report published on Wednesday.

Lockdowns aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus are reducing demand for aviation and driving fuels, particularly in the U.S., Europe and India, the organization said.

The darker outlook comes after three of OPEC’s key Persian Gulf exporters -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait -- said that next month they will deepen the supply curbs already agreed with fellow members and their allies. The Saudis aim to slash a further 1 million barrels a day in June, bringing their output to the lowest since 2002.