Oil prices enjoyed a bit of a rally Monday, following word that OPEC ministers will gather next month for a meeting during an international energy forum in Algeria.
The gathering will take place ahead of a scheduled meeting in November and has raised speculation that OPEC members might discuss a production freeze to help push up the global price of oil.
However, at the moment, that doesn’t appear likely.
Already twice this year, OPEC members have shot down attempts to freeze production in a bid to boost weak oil prices.
The CIO of Auspice Capital Tim Pickering said that until Saudi Arabia and Russia are on side with the idea, prices will likely remain depressed.
“In fact, Russia’s energy minister has indicated while they’re not adverse to meeting, he doesn’t think that the conditions have worsened to the point where a freeze is necessary and that prices are still at, more or less, normal levels,” Pickering explained.
Pickering also said that the Canadian energy patch can’t worry about what’s happening on the international stage, stressing the focus remains on our domestic market in terms of market access, and this fall’s U.S. presidential election.
“Canadian producers and the public needs to look at issues regarding the pipelines, issues regarding the U.S. election, issues regarding the importance of Canadian oil as a feedstock to the United States.”
