OPEC+ Likely To Stick To Oil Output Plan

OPEC and its allies are likely to stick to plans to raise oil output by 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) at an OPEC+ meeting on Thursday, despite calls from the United States for extra supply to cool rising prices.

Oil prices flipped to gains on Thursday as investors expect top producers to stand pat on output policy, shrugging off earlier concerns about the resumption of Iran nuclear talks that could result in more oil exports from Tehran.

Brent futures and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude pared losses of more than 1% as traders shifted focus to a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, later on Thursday.

The group is expected to reconfirm plans to keep monthly supply increases steady, despite calls for an acceleration.

Brent was up 47 cents, or 0.6%, at $82.46 a barrel by 0751 GMT, while WTI nudged up 2 cents to $80.88 a barrel after having slipped as low as $79.74.

Prices were down earlier, after Iran and six powers agreed to resume talks on Nov. 29 to revive the 2015 nuclear deal in Vienna. Iran has demanded that the United States drop sanctions that have limited its oil export.