Can the Oil Market Absorb OPEC+ Output Hikes?

OPEC+ never fails to surprise speculators and market analysts. This weekend’s meeting to decide August production levels was expected to be a short routine video call to announce another output hike of 411,000 barrels per day (bpd).   Short it was, but the size of the increase for August was bigger than expected— 548,000 bpd. The eight OPEC+ members that are unwinding the cuts are expected to make another supersized increase in September, with which the 2.2 million bpd cuts will all be back on the market, at least the headline…