ST PETERSBURG (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia and Russia are prepared to ease oil production cuts to calm consumers' worries they get adequate supply, the energy ministers for both countries said on Friday.
Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al Falih said the easing of restrictions would be gradual in order not to shock the market.
Russian minister Alexander Novak said current cuts were in reality 2.7 million barrels per day due to a drop in Venezuelan production - somewhere around one million barrels per day higher than the initially agreed cuts of 1.8 million bpd.
He declined to say however whether OPEC and Russia could decide to boost output by one million bpd at their meeting on June 22.