By: AGBI

Kuwait’s oil minister said he was optimistic about the oil market’s fundamentals and that Opec+ efforts aim for market balance, the state news agency (Kuna) reported on Tuesday.

Tariq Suleiman Al-Roumi’s comments came after Monday’s Opec+ meeting where Al-Roumi and other ministers from the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee met online for brief talks to stress the need for full compliance with oil production agreements.

“(I am) optimistic about the fundamentals of the oil market and that Opec+ efforts target energy security and market balance,” Kuna quoted him as saying, without giving further details.

Opec+, which pumps about half of the world’s oil, has been curtailing production for several years to support the market. But it reversed course this year to regain market share, and as US President Donald Trump demanded Opec pump more to help keep a lid on gasoline prices.

Eight members began to raise output in April and have accelerated production increases since then. Their most recent decision calls for an oil output increase of 548,000 barrels per day in August.

Al-Roumi said Kuwait supports efforts to maintain a stable international oil market and that Opec+ decisions are based on market developments.

Kuwait possesses some of the world’s largest oil reserves and, unlike its Gulf neighbours, remains heavily dependent on oil as it makes slow progress on diversifying its sources of revenues.

It ran up a budget deficit of $5.23 billion for the fiscal year 2023/24, on the back of declining oil revenues based on an oil price of $86.36 a barrel.

Kuwait’s draft budget for the fiscal year 2025/26, which started on April 1, sees the deficit widening to $20.43 billion as oil revenues are expected to fall 5.7% from 2024/25, based on an oil price of $68 a barrel, the country’s finance ministry said in February.