Brent crude soared 2.3% to $53.00 a barrel on Monday at around 07:00 AM GMT, amid hopes that OPEC+ may cap output at current levels in February at a meeting later in the day as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cast a shadow over oil demand.
OPEC+ was forced to cut output by a record amount in 2020 as global lockdown measures hammered fuel demand.
The cartel’s first cut production by 9.7 million bpd, then eased cuts to 7.7 million and ultimately to 7.2 million from January.
Meantime, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo said Sunday that while crude demand is expected to rise by 5.9 million barrels per day to 95.9 million bpd this year, the group sees plenty of downside demand risks in the first half of 2021.
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