Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and representatives of non-member states opposed actions aimed at reducing oil prices. The participants of the meeting in Algeria were informed about this in a joint statement.

On September 20, US President Donald Trump demanded from the "OPEC monopoly" to reduce oil prices. The US President has repeatedly made similar statements and called on, in particular, Saudi Arabia to increase oil production.

Such a move will lead to lower prices because of the growing supply, the meeting participants believe.. They specifically highlighted the "healthy correlation between supply and demand" in the oil market.

The final document of the meeting notes that the special committee will "study the forecast for 2019 and provide options for the level of production in the next year to avoid imbalance in the market". As Saudi Energy Minister Khaled bin Abdul Aziz al-Faleh stressed, OPEC members "demonstrated the availability of free capacities that they are ready to use" in the case of increased demand or a deficit in the market.

However, it is premature to speak about the activities of the association in 2019, the minister said..

According to experts, high prices are partly due to the policy of Trump himself - in particular, the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement with Iran. In 2016, OPEC members and a number of other states that are not members of the organization signed an agreement on limiting oil production, which also contributed to the growth of oil prices.

Source: DW.