Some

OPEC+

delegates said they expect the group will agree to

resume modest production increases

when it meets this weekend to review policy for April.

The group led by

Saudi Arabia

and

Russia

hasn’t yet settled a course of action ahead of its video conference on Sunday, according to delegates, who asked not to be identified as the talks are private.

Nonetheless, with

oil demand

proving robust and prices up roughly 17 per cent despite widespread expectations of a

supply surplus

, three officials indicated they anticipate a series of small hikes to resume in April. Another said this was possible but the decision is unclear, as escalating risks of conflict between the United States and Iran cloud the outlook.

Some analysts said OPEC+ could add 137,000 barrels a day, in line with the minimal additions made late last year.

While prominent forecasters warned of a significant supply glut this year, it hasn’t so far weighed on prices — partly because of the escalating geopolitical risks, but also amid a range of output disruptions spanning from North America to Kazakhstan and Russia.

U.S. shale oil giant Diamondback Energy Inc. said on Monday that the “wave of oversupply” is being deferred further out in time, a view echoed the following day by Baker Hughes Co., one of the world’s largest oilfield service providers.

—With assistance from Nayla Razzouk and Fiona MacDonald.

Bloomberg.com

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