UAE chairs 45th annual session of the Opec Fund Ministerial Council

Staff Reporter, Gulf Today

The UAE has chaired the 45th annual session of the Opec Fund Ministerial Council held in Vienna, Austria. During the meeting, council members discussed the annual report for 2023, as well as the latest developments and progress of the Fund’s projects and initiatives.

Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, UAE Minister of State for Financial Affairs, headed the UAE delegation. He was accompanied by Thuraiya Hamid Alhashmi, Director of International Financial Relations and Organizations at the UAE Ministry of Finance and Opec Fund Governing Board Representative, and Hammad Essa Al-Zaabi, Director of the Minister’s Office at the UAE Ministry of Finance and Opec Fund Alternate Governing Board Representative.

Mohamed Al Hussaini expressed his gratitude to the outgoing Chairman for his leadership over the past year and congratulated the President of the Opec Fund for the achievements recorded in 2023.

Al Hussaini said: “I believe this was accomplished with the support and guidance of the governing board as well as the hard work of the management and staff of the OPEC Fund. As the Fund strives for greater impact this year, I am confident it will surpass the achievements of the previous year with the support and guidance of the governing board and this Council.”

The session covered a comprehensive agenda, which included the election of the His Excellency Al Hussaini as Chairperson, and the Minister of People’s Power of Economy and Finances of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela as Vice-Chairperson. The organisation’s 2023 annual report and financial statements were presented, information was shared on the OPEC Fund Strategic Framework 2030-Mid Term Review, and a date and venue were set for the 2025 Ministerial Council meeting, among other matters.

During the tenure of  Mohamed Hadi Al Husseini as Chairperson of the Opec Fund for International Development, from June 2024 until the next meeting of the Ministerial Council in 2025, work will be carried out in coordination with the Fund’s governing board and members of the Ministerial Council, to facilitate the work of the Council, follow up on all topics that will be presented, and take all decisions regarding them. This reflects the UAE’s leading international status, and its role in supporting sustainable development efforts around the world.

The Opec Fund for International Development was established in 1976. It works in cooperation with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and developing country partners and the international development community, to stimulate economic growth and social progress in low- and middle-income countries around the world.

It focuses on projects addressing essential needs such as food, energy, infrastructure, employment, clean water and sanitation, healthcare, and education. It has committed about US$27 billion to development projects in over 125 countries, with a total project cost exceeding $200 billion.

Oil prices inched up during Asian trade on Wednesday despite a surprise jump in U.S. stockpiles, driven by geopolitical risks from the Middle East conflict and forecasts of an eventual inventory drawdown during the third quarter peak demand season.

Brent crude oil futures rose 41 cents, or 0.48%, to $85.42 a barrel by 0613 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 46 cents, or 0.57%, to $81.29 per barrel.

“It seems the market is shrugging off demand concerns for now, anticipating inventory drawdowns in peak third quarter demand season. Official Energy Information Administration (EIA) inventory numbers today will provide the market further pointers on the trend,” said Suvro Sarkar, energy sector team lead at DBS Bank.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported U.S. crude oil stocks rose by 914,000 barrels in the week ended June 21, according to market sources briefed on the data. Analysts polled by Reuters expect crude stocks to have declined by nearly 3 million barrels last week.

Official U.S. government data from the EIA on oil and fuel stockpiles is due at 1430 GMT.

Despite the near term pressure of a stronger dollar and bearish U.S. crude oil stocks data, the market is likely to find support on the back of continued opec+ cuts and stronger seasonal demand during the third quarter, said Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING.

“Our balance suggests the (global) market will be in a roughly 1.5 million barrels per day deficit in the third quarter due to continued opec+ cuts and stronger seasonal demand usually seen in the third quarter. We are already seeing signs of tightening with a stronger North Sea physical market.”

Strength in front-month prices are also indicating strong physical demand for oil, a boon for prices in the near-term, analysts say. August Brent and WTI prices were around 80 cents a barrel higher than September prices.

“Key oil market indicators are signalling that crude’s rebound is reflecting a stronger underlying physical market. The backwardation in the Brent and WTI structures strengthened in recent sessions, with key timespreads across all tenors the strongest since late April,” JP Morgan analysts wrote in a client note.