Iraq’s southern oil exports hit record before OPEC cuts

Bloomberg

Iraq’s oil exports from its southern ports in the Gulf reached a record high in
December, just before the country was due to join other major producers in cutting output to help curb a global oversupply.Shipments from southern ports in Basra Province averaged 3.51 million barrels a day in December, Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said in an e-mailed statement, up from 3.407 million in November.
He didn’t disclose figures for exports through Iraq’s northern pipeline network, which typically average about 600,000 barrels a day.
“Achieving this record average will not affect Iraq’s decision to cut output from the beginning of 2017,” Al-Luaibi said.
“Iraq is committed to achieving producers’ joint goals to control the oil glut in world markets.”
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries reached a deal on Nov. 30 to pare output by 1.2 million barrels a day in the first six months of 2017 in an effort to shore up prices. Eleven non-OPEC producers agreed in December to weigh in with additional cuts of 558,000 barrels a day.
Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest producer, pledged to cut 210,000 barrels daily day from its October levels.