UAE, Saudi boost oil output to offset declines in Iranian supplies 

(MENAFN) In order to offset a decline in Iran's oil exports, the UAE had increased its oil production to 2.7 million barrels per day (bpd), whereas Saudi had boosted its production to around 10 million bpd, reported Emirates 24/7.

According to Salid Khadduri, a former information director at the Kuwaiti-based Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), the two countries' decision to raise their oil production managed to prevent a further hike in global oil prices, which had reached their highest levels, at USD128 per barrel, following the Western sanctions imposed against Iranian oil imports.

Khadduri said that the recovery in Libya's oil output also managed to cool down oil prices, as the country's oil production during the first quarter rose to nearly 1.5 million bpd, compared to 1.6 million bpd before the civil war.

It is worth noting that OPEC's output surged to around 31.5-32 million bpd, exceeding the organization's ceiling of 30 million bpd, whereas in April, global oil supply grew by between 600,000 bpd and 91 million bpd, according to a recent report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).