OPEC calls on Wall Street Journal

An interesting war of words is unfolding between OPEC and the Wall Street Journal.

WSJ published an article today saying that the Saudi oil minister has threatened to offer $50 worth of oil to wrongdoers within OPEC if they don’t abide by limits. They named the representatives who participated in the conference call.

The Saudi message, according to a representative in attendance, was that there was no point in adding more kegs if there was no room for them in the market. “Some people are better off shutting up and respecting their commitments to OPEC+.”

OPEC just hit back strong denial And the scheduled phone call never took place.

Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article dated October 2, 2024: “Saudi Oil Mining could see prices fall to $50 per barrel if others cheat, sources say” The OPEC Secretariat categorically refutes the claims made in the article as follows: Totally inaccurate and misleading. The article cited a conference call in which Saudi Arabia’s energy minister allegedly warned OPEC+ members that prices could fall to $50 per barrel if they did not comply with agreed production cuts. erroneously reported that it had taken place. The minister also reportedly said, “Some people should just shut up and respect their commitments to OPEC+.” These claims are completely baseless. The OPEC Secretariat has stressed that no such conference call took place last week, and that there have been no conference calls or video conferences since the OPEC+ meeting on September 5. This alleged statement, attributed to an anonymous source, lacks any credibility and is completely fabricated. The OPEC Secretariat emphasizes that meetings, whether in person or by teleconference, will be conducted in a consistently civil and civil manner. It is therefore extremely concerning that the WSJ would publish such a report, which not only lacks journalistic integrity and professionalism, but also shows a blatant disregard for respect for OPEC+ ministers.

I usually side with the reporters in cases like this because sources are always checked, but this is an interesting quirk. Some may also argue that it sounds like OPEC is close to collapse, although I don’t think this report is particularly important to today’s oil price trends.

WSJ reporter Summer Said is credited as one of the three authors, and while she has sniffed out OPEC production cuts before, she also has some bizarre intelligence reports. I would like to note this.