OPEC+ countries agree modest rise in production as Iran retains chokehold on Hormuz

Seven countries in the OPEC+ grouping of oil-producing countries — including Saudi Arabia and Russia — say they have decided on a modest increase in production starting in June as part of a commitment to “market stability.”

The commitment from the seven countries, also including Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, and Oman, to raise production by 188,000 barrels per day comes after a virtual meeting they held on Sunday.

The move is mostly symbolic because it comes as Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, where about a fifth of the world’s trade in oil and natural gas typically passes, in the midst of the US-Israeli war. That has stopped much of the oil shipped from Gulf producers and knocked millions of barrels a day off the global market.

It also follows a decision by the United Arab Emirates to leave the OPEC oil cartel, shaking up the 65-year-old alliance that produces some 40 percent of the world’s crude oil and exerts major influence over the price of energy around the globe.

Iran is one of OPEC’s 12 member countries, and Russia is not — it works with the Vienna-based oil producers alliance through the OPEC+ grouping.

The seven countries say they will hold monthly meetings “to review market conditions, conformity, and compensation” and plan to meet again on June 7.