Oil fall further as doubts mount over plan to cut output

Oil resumed its down slide Monday morning with the benchmark Brent crude falling to $38.15 a as the chances of Middle East producers agreeing to curb overproduction appeared to fade, while stubbornly high US output and worries about Asia’s economic outlook also weighed on prices.

Iran, returning to global oil markets after sanctions against it were lifted in January, said it would continue increasing its oil production and exports until it reaches the market position it enjoyed before the imposition of sanctions, according to a media report.

Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh was quoted by the semi-official Mehr news agency as saying. Zanganeh was speaking at the weekend ahead of an April 17 meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers in Doha to discuss a possible output freeze to prop up prices, and his comment appeared to further threaten the prospect of an effective agreement at the meeting.

Saudi Arabia on the other will only freeze oil output if Iran and other major producers do so, the kingdom’s deputy crown prince said, challenging the country’s main regional rival to take an active role in stabilizing the over-supplied global crude market.