Oil markets could see a supply shock of 2 million barrels a day this year as OPEC and Russia slash production

• Global oil markets could see a supply deficit of 2 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter.

• That’s after OPEC and Russia announced steep cuts to crude production.

• Meanwhile, oil demand is expected to hit a fresh record high later this year.

Global oil markets will see a sizable supply deficit this year, as the production cutbacks of major exporters begin to kick in.

The world will be short by about 2 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter, more than reversing an expected surplus of 300,000 barrels a day in the second quarter, according to OPEC data cited by Bloomberg.

That’s after OPEC and non-member partner Russia announced steep cuts to their production. On April 2, OPEC lowered its planned output by 1 million barrels a day, citing protection against price shocks after March’s bank turmoil caused a brief drop in the oil prices.

Soon after the OPEC news, Russia also announced that it would extend its own cutback of 500,000 barrels a day through the end of the year.

Actual reductions in oil output may not end up being as steep as the announced cuts to production quotas, given that some members of the coalition are already producing below target levels.

Still, prospects for tighter oil supplies come as demand will continue to ramp up, putting more upward pressure on crude prices, which have jumped 20% over the last month.

OPEC forecasts that oil consumption will climb by 2.3 million barrels a day this year to hit a new record 101.89 million a day.

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