(Bloomberg) -- OPEC and its allies are expected to agree deeper production cutbacks this week as the coronavirus batters oil demand, a Bloomberg survey showed.
All but two of 29 analysts, traders and brokers in a global poll predicted that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies will announce new curbs, with an average expectation of 750,000 barrels a day. That’s slightly above the 600,000 barrel-a-day cut recommended by the organization’s technical committee in February.
The 23-nation alliance spearheaded by Saudi Arabia and Russia will meet in Vienna on Thursday and Friday, with oil prices near their lowest in more than two years as the virus cripples Chinese manufacturing and threatens a global recession.
The Saudis have been pushing OPEC+ to act for several weeks, and President Vladimir Putin has signaled he’s willing to support them.
Predictions in the survey for supply cutbacks ranged from as little as 300,000 barrels a day, to as much as 1.5 million a day. That would come in addition to the supply curb of 2.1 million barrels a day the organization agreed in December.
OPEC+ has been known to spring surprises on the market. When the group last met in December, all but one of 35 analysts forecast it would keep production levels unchanged. Instead, the organization announced a new supply cut.
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