(Bloomberg) -- OPEC+ failed to reach a deal, abandoning its planned meeting and leaving theoil market facing much tighter supplies than had been expected.
Several days of tense talks failed to resolve a bitter dispute between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, delegates said, asking not to be named because the information wasn’t public. In absence of an agreement, the cartel’s current production limits will remain in place, depriving the global economy of vital extra supplies as demand recovers rapidly from the coronavirus pandemic.
Crude prices jumped 0.8% to $76.77 a barrel as of 4:25 p.m. in London.
The outcome is a significant failure for the cartel. Relations have soured between two core members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to such an extent that no compromise was possible. It damages the group’s self-image as a responsible steward of the oil market, raising the likelihood of a further inflationary price spike.
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