Round Two of Freeze Talks Set for May.....or Possibly June, Location Undetermined

Talk of the next freeze meeting has already started, but clarity over specifics, as ever, remain unclear.

Despite overwhelming criticism for the proposal of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members and some non-members to freeze output and their botched meeting at Doha on April 17, major oil producers will push the proposal again at another meeting in Russia.

The meeting could occur as early as next month, according to Fayyad Al-Nima, deputy oil minister for Iraq, but Abdallah Salem el-Badri, secretary-general for OPEC, said member/non-members talks would take place at the cartel's next meeting in June.

Al-Nima said, "Iraq's view is to have a freeze in output for a short period to help protect the interests of both producers and consumers equally by easing the surplus from the market and improving prices."

Ibrahim Muhanna, a top oil ministry adviser for Saudi Arabia, told the press that "The door for future cooperation remains open and I am sure we will discuss it in June."

The Saudis quashed the Doha freeze deal by insisting that Iran – which had repeatedly stated its intention to boost, not lower, production - also had curb its output.

Oil prices, which of late have soared and plummeted based on little more than rumour of agreement or discord between producing nations, rose on Wednesday following Al-Nima's statement, with West Texas Intermediate climbing 3.8 percent to $42.63 a barrel in New York and Brent advancing 4 percent to $45.80 – the two highest closes since November 25.

This prompted Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst at Price Futures Group, to remark, "Revived hope about the big freeze has traders covering their shorts."

Both grades promptly fell back over two percent Thursday, and bunker buyers should expect no letup in volatility.

Prior to the Doha meeting, Iraq, which posted near-record oil exports in March, stated that a freeze is something "everybody" needs.