On Sunday, a meeting of 18 major oil-producing countries in Qatar ended without an agreement to boost prices by freezing oil production, after Iran declined to send a representative and regional arch-rival Saudi Arabia said it wouldn't agree to a freeze unless Iran signed on. Oil prices had risen from a 12-year low of under $30 a barrel in December to over $40 before the weekend talks, but prices opened sharply lower in Asian trading early Monday and were expected to drop when U.S. and European markets open.
Iran, which just started shipping oil to Europe again after the end of sanctions, decided to cancel its participation in the meeting late Saturday. Tehran bowed out "as we are not part of the decision to freeze output," Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said on state television. "We can't cooperate with them to freeze our own output, and in other words impose sanctions on ourselves." The 18 countries in Qatar included several members of OPEC, including Venezuela and Nigeria, as well as non-OPEC member Russia. OPEC doesn't have a scheduled meeting until June.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
US charges Indian tycoon with bribery, fraudSpeed Read Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has been indicted by US prosecutors for his role in a $265 million scheme to secure solar energy deals
-
Boeing machinists approve contract, end strikeSpeed Read The company's largest union approved the new contract offer, ending a seven-week strike
-
US economy still strong in final preelection reportSpeed Read It grew at a solid 2.8% annual rate from July through September
-
Boeing machinists reject deal, continue strikeSpeed Read The rejection came the same day Boeing reported a $6.2 billion quarterly loss
-
Ports reopen after dockworkers halt strikeSpeed Read The 36 ports that closed this week, from Maine to Texas, will start reopening today
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homesSpeed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bidSpeed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
