Opec and its allies are working on a deal for an unprecedented oil production cut equivalent to around 10 per cent of worldwide supply in what they expect will be a global effort, including the United States, but the White House did not make such a commitment after a Friday meeting with oil companies.

While US President Donald Trump pledged help for the industry at the meeting, he made no commitment to take the extraordinary step of persuading US companies to cut output.

In a subsequent phone conference, US energy secretary Dan Brouillette told industry executives that the White House is not negotiating with Saudi Arabia or Russia, but it is encouraging them to come together to reach an agreement to cut production, a source who listened to the call said.

The oil market has crashed, with prices falling to $34 a barrel from $65 at the beginning of the year, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Fuel demand has dropped by roughly a third, or 30 million barrels per day, as billions of people worldwide restrict their movements.

A global deal to reduce production by as much as 10 million to 15 million barrels per day would require participation from nations that do not exert state control over output, including the United States, now the world’s largest producer of crude.

Trump said on Thursday he did not make any concessions to Saudi Arabia and Russia, such as agreeing to a US domestic production cut, a move forbidden by US antitrust laws. Some US officials have suggested US production was set for a steep decline anyway because of low prices. Reuters