OPEC and allied non-OPEC oil producers including Russia agreed at the start of December to curb output by 1.2 million bpd. That’s equivalent to more than 1 percent of global demand, in a bid to drain tanks and boost prices.
However, the cutbacks — which are not scheduled to go into effect until January — have failed to put a halt to tumbling oil prices.
Since climbing to four-year highs in early October, crude futures have crashed by more than a third. The latest wave of heavy selling comes at a time when the energy market as well as the global economy is gripped by a flurry of bearish factors.
Heightened concerns of oversupply, reports of swelling inventories, forecasts of record U.S. and Russian output and intensifying concerns about an economic slowdown have all placed downward pressure on the value of a barrel of oil.
International benchmark Brent crude traded at around $55.43 on Thursday, down around 3 percent, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stood at around $46.56, more than 3.3 percent lower.
CNBC reached out to OPEC on Thursday but a comment was not available immediately.
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