Oil prices fall, defying suggestions of a $100 barrel

This year Saudi Arabia and its allies in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (opec) have been trying to climb what seems like a particularly slippery slope. Despite production cuts, crude-oil prices, which exceeded $115 a barrel for much of June 2022, languished below $80 a year later. Then the cartel appeared to regain control after Saudi Arabia decided on an extra output cut of 1m barrels a day (b/d)—equivalent to 1% of global demand—which it has since extended until the end of the year. Signs that the global economy might avoid a recession after all also helped. On September 27th oil prices neared $97 a barrel.