The energy minister of the United Arab Emirates said Sunday that OPEC and allied countries have reached a 'full agreement' after an earlier dispute that roiled oil prices. The comments by Suhail al-Mazrouei to journalists came after an online meeting to reach a deal. He offered no immediate details, though Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman acknowledged that five countries would see their production limits raised. He declined to elaborate on how they came to that consensus, saying it would see the cartel 'lose our advantage of being mysterious and clever'. Earlier this month, talks over production levels disintegrated, in part over the United Arab Emirates wanting to increase its own production levels. That sparked tension between it and Saudi Arabia, long the heavyweight of the Vienna-based cartel, amid other disagreements between the two neighboring Gulf Arab nations. Prince Abdulaziz deferred at the beginning of a news conference afterward to al-Mazrouei in a sign of respect. 'The UAE is committed to this group and will always work with it and within this group to do our best to achieve the market balance and help everyone,' al-Mazrouei said. Oil prices collapsed amid the coronavirus pandemic as demand for jet fuel and gasoline dropped amid lockdowns across the globe, briefly seeing oil futures trade in the negatives. Demand since has rebounded as vaccines, while still distributed unequally across the globe, reach arms in major world economies. Benchmark Brent crude oil traded around $73 a barrel Friday.
