Oil prices fell on Monday as oversupply concerns continue to pressure prices, even as OPEC and its allies agreeing to cut production by 9.7 million barrels per day. The deal, which was finalized on Sunday after marathon discussions that spanned four days, is the single largest output cut in history.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.54% to settle at $22.41 per barrel, while international benchmark Brent crude rose 33 cents to $31.81 per barrel. Earlier in the session WTI had been up as much as 8%.
The group, known as OPEC+, initially proposed cutting production by 10 million bpd — amounting to some 10% of global oil supply — on Thursday, but Mexico opposed the amount it was being asked to cut, holding up the final deal. Under the new agreement, Mexico will cut 100,000 bpd, instead of its initial allocation of 400,000 bpd.