OPEC oil output climbs as Saudi pumps near record volume: report

OPEC’s crude oil production rose in July as Saudi Arabia pumped near-record volumes, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.

The Kingdom’s oil production grew by 230,000 barrels per day (bpd) last month, to 10.65 million barrels per day (mpd), marginally lower than an all-time peak reached in 2016, according to a Bloomberg survey of analysts, oil companies and ship-tracking data.

Higher oil output from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Iraq pushed up total production from the OPEC by 300,000 bpd, offsetting losses from Venezuela, Libya and the onset of US sanctions against Iran. The group’s 15 members collectively produced 32.6 mpd.

Saudi Arabia’s production increase shows it’s delivering on promises to prevent prices from damaging the global economy after Brent crude reached a three-year high above $80 per barrel in May. 

In June, OPEC+ agreed on a combined increase in crude oil output of 1 million bpd from July following calls from major consumers to help reduce prices and avoid a supply shortage.

Global benchmark Brent crude rose 0.33 percent at $72.63 per barrel (bbl), while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 0.33 percent to 67.88/bbl  early Thursday.