Oil prices plunged on May 25 when OPEC and its non-OPEC partners extended their production cut deal through March 2018. At the time, the market had not only expected deeper or longer cuts, but also it also wanted to know how the group would return to ramp up production after the pact expires. Five months ago, the lack of an exit strategy was an equally (if not bigger) worrying sign to the oil market than the slow pace of inventory drawdowns. In managing expectations and communicating a longer-term strategy for after-the-cuts, OPEC failed. Now, as the cartel and cooperating non-OPEC members discuss yet another extension of the deal—possibly throughout 2018 —it looks like they’re determined to have a strategy for a gradual return of production to the market. OPEC and the Russia-led alliance of non-OPEC producers are taking 1.8 million bpd of oil off the market, and a near-instant […]