OPEC, Non-OPEC to Meet on July 1-2

OPEC and its allies have fixed the date of their upcoming meetings in Vienna for July 1-2, four sources have told S&P Global Platts, ending a protracted scheduling spat that the organization's president had warned was keeping the oil market on edge.
OPEC's website has been updated with the date change, and officials said a formal announcement would be released later Wednesday.
With just 11 days left before the OPEC/non-OPEC coalition's 1.2 million bpd production cut agreement is set to expire at the end of June, several ministers have signaled that an extension is likely, as oil prices have slumped on downbeat global economic forecasts.
But the dithering over the meeting date, along with a recent ratcheting of Middle East geopolitical tensions, threatened to leave the group exposed to doubts about its resolve.
"As the market remains fragile and somewhat jittery as a result of this indecision, as well as other factors, it is imperative that we show solidarity in scheduling these important meetings," Venezuelan Oil Minister Manuel Quevedo, who holds OPEC's rotating presidency this year, wrote to his coalition counterparts Tuesday, in a letter seen by Platts.
Under the plan, which was proposed by Quevedo in his letter and formally approved Wednesday, a nine-country Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee will meet the morning of July 1, before OPEC convenes that afternoon. The 10 non-OPEC partners led by Russia will join the talks the next day.