topline
Oil producers in the Persian Gulf are likely to take steps to boost output in the weeks following President Joe Biden’s visit to Middle East leaders, one of the president’s energy advisers said on Sunday, predicting that U.S. natural gas prices could continue to rise from record highs. The highs fell to nearly $4 a gallon.
US President Joe Biden is welcomed by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Al Salam … [+]
Saudi Arabian Royal Court/Handout
key facts
He said on Sunday that Amos Hochstein, the State Department’s top energy security adviser, is “confident” to take “a few more steps” to increase oil production in the region in the coming weeks, based on conversations Biden made during a weekend trip to Saudi Arabia. Appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” in the morning.
Last week, Biden said he believed Saudi Arabia would supply more oil after a visit to the kingdom – although he did not confirm it – while Hochstein said on Sunday that some other Gulf states “have room to increase production.”
Hochstein did not specify which countries could increase oil exports, but he mentioned that the president and his advisers met with members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
what to watch out for
National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan said on Friday he expected Saudi Arabia to increase output after the Aug. 3 OPEC+ meeting, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and several others. Last year, OPEC+ members gradually increased their oil export targets each month.
key background
The increase in oil supplies will help lower gas prices at U.S. gas stations, which have finally started to fall in recent weeks after the average surged to a record $5 a gallon early last month following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On Sunday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. was about $4.53, according to AAA, and Hochstein said he expects prices to drop further to around $4 a gallon. Oil prices also fell last week, but some analysts expect prices for both to rebound later this year. Gas prices could surge again ahead of a new round of sanctions on Russia, including a European ban on seaborne imports of Russian oil and insuring Russian tankers, The Washington Post reported.
Tangent
Biden’s first presidential visit to Saudi Arabia has been controversial, especially his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose de facto leader has been accused of human rights abuses. According to U.S. intelligence, bin Salman ordered the killing of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi, a frequent critic of the Saudi regime. Over the weekend, Biden and the crown prince greeted each other with their fists, which Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan called “shameful” and would help bin Salman obtain “the baseless redemption he has been desperately seeking. “.
Further reading
Oil sell-off continues amid recession ‘panic’, but analysts predict price rebound later in 2022 (Forbes)
