Trump Says OPEC to Blame for High Oil Prices

US President Donald Trump said in a statement on Wednesday the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is to blame for high oil prices.

“Oil prices are too high, OPEC is at it again. Not good!” Trump said in a Twitter message.

In April-May, oil prices reached their four-year maximum. Brent crude oil price reached USD80 per barrel for the first time since November 25, 2014.

However, in late May, oil prices dropped in light of the reports about a possible relaxation of conditions of the OPEC-non-OPEC deal. In June, crude oil has been trading at about USD75-76 per barrel.

OPEC and several non-OPEC oil producers reached a deal in Vienna in 2016, agreeing to cut oil output by a total of 1.8 million barrels per day in an effort to stabilize global oil prices. The agreement, which came into effect in 2017, has been extended twice since then.

The signatories to the OPEC-non-OPEC deal are currently considering possible changes to the terms of the deal, in particular, the possibility of increasing oil production.

The next meeting of the parties to the deal will be held on June 23 in Vienna, while the meeting of the OPEC members will take place one day earlier.

On Wednesday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a report that the rapidly rising growth of oil prices would likely ease soon. (Sputnik)