With oil prices poised to pass the $100 mark any day now, a pair of reports speculates that OPEC will cool the overheated market by boosting oil production, the Wall Street Journal reports. One consulting firm said OPEC, spurred by Saudi Arabia’s increased deliveries to the US, could up output by as much as 720,000 barrels a day.
Another firm said OPEC’s exports would hit 31.573 million barrels a day this month, up 324,000 a day from the previous month. One trader said the news “undermines the building blocks” of the price surge, but added “it won’t be enough to take the $100 target out of the picture.” OPEC leaders meet Dec. 5 in Abu Dhabi. (More OPEC stories.)