Opec primes the pump

The latest target rollover means more crude is on the way.

Brent at $65/barrel is 40% beneath its price last year; rig counts in the US have fallen by more than half in the same period; the industry has wiped $100 billion off planned capital investment; and even Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest crude exporter, is cutting travel perks for executives. The crude supply glut is taking its toll. Yet within Opec everyone agrees the world needs more oil. That, combined with the remarkable resilience of unconventional oil producers in North America, means the glut is likely to continue for some time. The group’s decision in Vienna on 5 June to keep its 30 million barrels/day (b/d) output target in place was unanimous. Ali Naimi, the Saudi oil minister, eve