High oil prices benefit no one, says Russia’s energy minister

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak attends the OPEC Ministerial Monitoring Committee in Algiers, Algeria September 23, 2018. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak told Rossiya state TV that high oil prices are not beneficial to anyone, after the OPEC and non-OPEC group of oil-producing countries ruled out any immediate increase in crude output.

“All countries should aim to reach one goal: a balance of demand and supply. High oil prices are not beneficial to anyone,” Novak said in an interview recorded in Algiers where the OPEC and non-OPEC countries were meeting over the weekend.

Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told Rossiya state TV channel separately via a translator that oil markets are ‘very well balanced’. “We expect a supply surplus in 2019, maybe there will have to return to a cut,” Falih said.