OPEC wants $50 oil
The illusion that OPEC has control of the oil market is slowly coming crashing down.
Iran oil minister Zanganeh said today that talks have begun about further cuts. It comes less than a month after OPEC's one-year cut extension announced May 25.
"We are consulting with OPEC member states to have them prepared to make a decision," he said. "Decision-making would mean for OPEC to make further cuts," he clarified, adding that reaching a consensus would be "difficult."
There has been a wave of jawboning in the past 12 hours but oil has barely bounced from the lows. API inventory data was mixed as gasoline and distillate stockpiles grow. The official numbers are due at 1430 GMT.
The side-effect of the price drop is that it weakens the cartel internally. The low prices will put pressure on government budgets and that incentivizes cheating.
