OPEC Data Are Said to Show August Output Falling as Saudis Cut

(Bloomberg) -- OPEC’s estimate of its oil production is expected to show a decrease in August from July as the group’s biggest member Saudi Arabia pared output, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The 12 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries bound by its agreement to cut output pumped 30.004 million barrels a day in August, based on information from four of six secondary sources, according to the person, who asked not to be identified for lack of authorization to speak to media. OPEC produced 30.113 million barrels a day in July, according to all six external data sets known as secondary sources.

Saudi Arabia pumped 10.022 million barrels a day in August, the secondary sources show, down from 10.049 million barrels a day in July. This estimate contrasts with Saudi Arabia’s own data that it presented to OPEC showing the kingdom pumped 9.95 million barrels a day in August, down from 10.01 million barrels a day in July, the person said.

OPEC and major producers including Russia and Kazakhstan are seeking to rein in a global oversupply of crude to help support prices. Benchmark Brent crude has slipped 5.9 percent this year and was trading at $53.48 a barrel in London at 9:47 a.m. local time on Tuesday.

The August estimate excludes output from Libya and Nigeria, both of which are exempt from OPEC’s November accord to cut production. Libya pared output to 890,000 barrels a day in August, while Nigeria increased production to 1.86 million barrels a day, the data show.

To contact the reporter on this story: Wael Mahdi in Kuwait at wmahdi@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nayla Razzouk at nrazzouk2@bloomberg.net, Bruce Stanley, Amanda Jordan