LONDON (Financial Times) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has added her voice to the members of the Biden administration sounding off against the recent oil production cuts announced by the group OPEC+.
Yellen said the move by OPEC+ to cut oil production was “unhelpful and unwise” for the global economy, particularly emerging markets already struggling with high energy prices.
The Biden administration has been loudly critical of the decision by the oil cartel which took the step in defiance of U.S. pressure to keep global oil prices down.
“I think OPEC’s decision is unhelpful and unwise — it’s uncertain what impact it will end up having, but certainly, it’s something that, to me, did not seem appropriate, under the circumstances we face,” said Yellen in a phone interview with the Financial Times. “We’re very worried about developing countries and the problems they face.”
Ministers from OPEC+ on Wednesday said they would cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day in a move that is expected to raise oil prices globally.
The OPEC decision came as the White House pushed top oil producers like Saudi Arabia — which leads the international oil cartel — not to make drastic cuts to oil production as gas prices remain high.