, Columnist
OPEC+ Deal Isn't Worth the Paper It's Written On
In reality, OPEC's new deal isn't much different than the old one.
Time will tell.
Photographer: Rich Press/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
There was an elephant in the room during the recent OPEC+ meeting: The record-breaking initial public offering of Saudi Arabia’s mammoth oil company Saudi Aramco occurring at exactly the same time.
The coincidence meant that the output cuts agreed by OPEC and its allies were designed as much to bolster the share price of Saudi Arabian Oil Co., as they were to balance the oil market going into 2020. This will greatly complicate matters for Saudi Arabia when it finds itself having to impose discipline on fellow producers looking for ways to adhere to their targets without actually cutting production. The deal is much weaker than it looks.