The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies decided during a virtual meeting on Sunday to hike oil production for September by 548,000 barrels per day (bpd), energy journalist Amena Bakr reported. “The phase-out of the additional voluntary production adjustments may be paused or reversed subject to evolving market conditions. This flexibility will allow the group to continue to support oil market stability. The eight OPEC+ countries also noted that this measure will provide an opportunity for the participating countries to accelerate their compensation,” the cartel noted in a statement. People familiar with the matter have said Saudi Arabia’s main objective is to recoup the market share OPEC+ has ceded to rivals like US shale drillers during years of output cutbacks. Riyadh’s OPEC+ quota for August, at 9.756 million barrels a day, would roughly put its production at the highest level in two years. The decision comes amid increasing US pressure to bring Moscow to the negotiating table to end their ongoing, full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Threating to put 100% duty on Russian oil. A disruption to Russian flows would threaten to drive up crude prices and run counter to Trump’s repeated call for cheaper oil, as he pushes the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak made a rare visit to Riyadh on Thursday to discuss “cooperation between the countries” with Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman. The two countries have jointly led OPEC+ since its creation almost a decade ago.