The decision by OPEC+ to boost its production quotas did not have the desired effect on oil markets, with prices having increased since then. One of the main reasons for this upward pressure is that the world’s spare oil production capacity is extremely tight. With so little spare capacity, the risk of Libya going offline or a major hurricane-induced disruption in the Gulf of Mexico has oil markets worried. When OPEC+ agreed to boost its monthly production growth target from 432,000 bpd to 648,000 bpd last week, many politicians in Europe and the White House across the Atlantic must have breathed a sigh of relief. But it wasn’t a lengthy relief. Following the OPEC+ announcement, oil prices should have dropped, but they didn’t. Prices rose. And this wasn’t just because the increase in target production growth could remain on paper only. It was because of spare capacity as well. […]