Iran Boosts Crude Output by Most Since Sanctions Ease

Iran, which wants an exemption from OPEC’s accord to cut production, told the group it raised output by the most since international sanctions were lifted, while Iraq -- also insisting it should be spared -- gave no reading at all.

Freed from curbs on its oil trade in January, Iran said it increased output by 210,000 barrels a day to 3.92 million a day in October, according to a report from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries published on Friday, Bloomberg reported.

That is 230,000 barrels a day more than estimated by OPEC itself, whose members are due to finalize how much each will cut when they gather on Nov. 30. Production from Saudi Arabia, which typically declines at this time of year, remained near record levels.

Oil prices climbed about 16% in the weeks after OPEC’s Sept. 28 meeting in Algiers, where the group ended a two-year policy of pumping without limits to agree a production cut aimed at clearing a global surplus.

Yet prices have since retreated on doubts the deal can succeed when key members Iran and Iraq argue they should not need to cut while recovering from losses to war and sanctions.

OPEC’s monthly report contains two sets of production data: one submitted by individual members, known as “direct communication,” and another compiled from external sources such as news agencies and intergovernmental institutions, referred to as “secondary sources.”

Iran’s reported production increase of 210,000 barrels in October exceeds the combined gains of the previous five months, OPEC’s data show. Secondary sources showed a more modest addition of 27,500 barrels a day for October.

Saudi Arabia, which has said it wants other nations to cooperate in the production rollback, reported its production was little changed in October at 10.625 million barrels a day, even though supplies typically ease at this time of year as seasonal domestic demand slackens.

The secondary sources show that OPEC output increased by 236,700 barrels a day to 33.64 million a day in October, as Nigeria and Libya recovered output lost to sabotage, militant attacks and political conflict.