Opec+ sticks with planned supply hike

Raising supply: A Saudi Aramco engineer monitors the central control room at the Khurais oil field. Opec is in the process of rolling back the unprecedented output cuts implemented at the depths of the Covid-19 crisis last year. — AP

NEW YORK: The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and its allies agreed to stick to their existing plan for gradual monthly oil-production increases after a brief video conference.

Ministers ratified the 400,000 barrel-a-day supply hike scheduled for October after less than an hour of talks, one of the quickest meetings in recent memory and a stark contrast to the drawn-out negotiations seen in July.