Oil Prices Jump After OPEC Extends Cuts. It Could Be a Short-Lived Bump.
Oil prices were rising early Monday after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries extended production cuts.
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, was up 2.2% at $71.01 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 2.1% to $74.63. Both contracts are up about 4% over the past five days.
OPEC+, the group that includes the official OPEC members as well as Russia, on Sunday said it would extend output curbs already in place by one month until the end of the year. Worries about the conflict in the Middle East expanding still overshadow the oil market–if supplies from Iran, a major producer, are cut off, then prices would rise further.