Angola's decision to pull out from OPEC causes oil prices to fall

Angola has decided to leave the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The decision was made at a meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Republic led by the country's President João Lourenço. Angola's decision caused Brent oil prices to fall Immediately below $79 per barrel.

"We believe that Angola is not gaining anything at the moment by remaining in the organisation, and in order to protect its interests, we decided to leave,” Angolan President João Lourenço said.

Angola's Oil and Gas Minister Diamantino Azevedo said that the decision was not easy. The country has always fulfilled its obligations and fought for the modernisation of OPEC, but "when we are organisation members and our ideas do not have any effect, it is best to leave," the minister said.

Angola was unhappy with oil production quotas

OPEC earlier decided that its member countries should cut oil output. Angola rejected the decision and found the new quotas too low. Angola's representative to OPEC, Estevao Pedro, stated that the country would still produce oil in excess of its quota. Angola's position became one of the reasons to postpone the OPEC+ ministerial meeting in Vienna from November 26 to November 30. Nigeria and Congo also expressed their complaints about OPEC+ plans to cut production.

Following Angola's decision, the price of the world's benchmark Brent crude oil on the London ICE exchange fell below $79 per barrel by 1.8 percent. During the previous three days, the price was growing against the backdrop of Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea.