VIENNA— Major oil-producing countries led by Saudi Arabia and Russia look set to maintain their current output levels at a meeting Sunday, ahead of fresh sanctions against Moscow coming into force.

The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is due to consult with 10 other oil-producing nations, including Russia, to review their decision in October to cut production by two million barrels per day.

The OPEC+ videoconference will take place from 1100 GMT Sunday.

On Friday, the EU, G7 and Australia agreed a $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian oil, which will come into effect on Monday or soon after, alongside an EU embargo on maritime deliveries of Russian crude oil.

It will prevent seaborne shipments of Russian crude to the European Union, which account for two thirds of the bloc’s oil imports from Russia, an attempt to deprive Moscow’s war chest of billions of euros.

While Russia denounced the incoming price cap on Saturday, threatening to suspend deliveries to any country that adopted the measure, Ukraine suggested the cap should have been set even lower.

Since the group’s last meeting in early October, Brent North Sea oil and its US equivalent, WTI, have lost more than six percent of their value.

But speculation that a further OPEC+ production cut might still be on the table boosted prices throughout the week.

Source: Nam News Network