Oil prices had their steepest plunge in more than a decade Friday, after there was no indication of an agreement between OPEC and Russia on production cuts.
Brent crude futures contracts for May delivery declined more than -9.4%, or $4.72 per barrel --the biggest one-day decline since 2008. The gauge ended Friday at $45.27 per barrel, which is also the lowest level for the global benchmark since 2016. WTI contracts for April delivery was -10% lower.
OPEC had wanted additional cut of 1.5 million barrels per day, as long as Russia and other non-member states supported the plan with cuts of their own.
OPEC’s statement on had no mention of either deeper cuts, or extending the existing output agreement from 2016, which cuts around 1.7 million barrels per day from the market and is set to expire at the end of the month. OPEC mentioned in the note that member state producers would "continue to stabilize markets".
Risks of an oversupplied oil market could be potentially aggravating, particularly amid the Coronavirus crisis which is hurting global demand for fuel.