Oil closes 3.5% higher, Brent above $91

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices closed higher today, Oct. 4, amid expectations that OPEC+ will reduce oil production sharply.

Investors are awaiting the decision of OPEC+, expected to come on Oct. 5, regarding oil production policy, after a Bloomberg report indicated that the coalition is considering reducing supplies by up to two million barrels. Amin Al-Nasser, President and CEO of Saudi Aramco, said that the oil market does not focus on reducing spare capacity, stressing that having excess production capacity is not the responsibility of Saudi Arabia alone.

An official at the US Treasury stated that the G7 countries will announce the imposition of a maximum price for Russian oil some time before Dec. 5, when European sanctions against the Russian oil industry are expected to come into force, Bloomberg reported.

Oil prices also benefited from the strong decline of the US dollar against the major currencies today, amid a noticeable recovery in risky assets thanks to speculation that central banks will slow down the pace of monetary tightening to prevent a recession.

Brent crude settled higher by 3.3%, or $2.94, at $91.80 a barrel. WTI crude increased by 3.5%, or $2.89, to reach $86.52 a barrel.