Oil prices extended losses, albeit at a slower pace, on Friday, July 16, with Brent dipping 0.16% to $ 72.64/bbl, and WTI closing 0.13% lower at $71.09/bbl.

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Over the weekend, the OPEC+ ministerial meeting, which had been postponed earlier in July, finally took place. As a result, OPEC+ member countries achieved two important results – an increase in oil production by 400 kbpd each month from August until the end of 2021, as well as the extension of the OPEC+ agreement until the end of 2022, while from May 2022 Russia, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq and Kuwait will be allowed to raise their baseline according to individual (softer) production quotas.

Prices continue to decline in Monday morning trading, likely due to concerns that increased output could create excess supply in the face of insufficient demand. At the time of writing, Brent was down 0.40%, and WTI was off 0.64%, after dropping below $71/bbl. Our Brent price forecast for today is in the range of $72-73/bbl.