Reuters: Kuwait’s Output Reaches Highest Level Since Iran War Began

Key Facts

Reuters published a report on November 2, 2026, with a headline saying Kuwait’s oil output had reached its highest level since the Iran war began, citing a source, according to the report page on MarketScreener. The available page did not show the report’s text, so it did not provide the output figure or measurement date. The published material also did not clarify the basis for comparison stated in the headline. Kuwait’s output had featured in earlier reports on supply disruptions during the war. The National said, citing OPEC data from secondary sources, that Kuwait’s output fell from 1.16 million barrels per day in March to 573,000 barrels per day in May.

OPEC data provides context on the group’s production policy, without confirming the output level cited in Reuters’ report. The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee said it had reviewed crude production data for July and August 2026 and noted overall conformity with the Declaration of Cooperation. In a separate decision, OPEC said the seven participating countries kept required production for November at September levels, with Kuwait among them. The decision provides a framework for Kuwait’s required output in November, but does not specify its actual production on the date of Reuters’ report. The published information also does not allow the gap between actual output and the allocated quota to be measured.

The seven countries were Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman, according to the Associated Press. The agency reported that they had agreed to keep November output steady and noted a meeting scheduled for November 1 to review oil market conditions. According to OPEC, the monitoring committee tracks production data under the Declaration of Cooperation among participating countries. The available sources did not say that the decision to hold production steady caused the change in Kuwait’s output discussed in Reuters’ headline. Nor did the sources specify the reasons, timing or scale of the reported increase.

Against the backdrop of supply disruptions, the chief executive of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said pre-war production levels could be restored within weeks once regular international commercial shipping resumed at Kuwaiti ports. The statement appeared in a report published by The National in June, which said output had fallen to 1.16 million barrels per day in March and then to 573,000 in May. The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee said attacks on energy infrastructure and disruption to shipping routes increase market volatility and undermine collective efforts to stabilize it. OPEC also said restoring damaged assets to full capacity is costly and takes a long time. This places production and shipping movements in the context of the infrastructure and navigation challenges covered by the sources, without identifying a specific cause for the change cited in Reuters’ report.

In the oil market, daily closing data provided to EL7 showed Brent at $108.71 a barrel on November 2, while West Texas Intermediate stood at $99.44. In a separate report on morning trading that day, Reuters said Brent fell 4.2% to $108.64 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate dropped 4.2% to $99.71. Reuters linked the price decline to hopes of progress in talks aimed at ending the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Reuters had reported that Brent ended October at a six-month high, amid fears of an escalation in the U.S.-Iran conflict after the U.S. midterm elections. These figures show market moves on the day the production report was published, without Reuters or EL7’s data attributing those moves to Kuwait’s output.

As for next steps, OPEC set November 29, 2026, for the 69th meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee. The committee is scheduled to continue reviewing participating countries’ production data, after its previous meeting covered July and August data. On the price outlook, Goldman Sachs raised its oil forecasts, saying Brent could reach $140 a barrel in 2027 if Gulf production remained 3.5 million barrels per day below its 2025 average. Reuters reported that estimate in the context of elevated supply risks. It is a scenario conditional on Gulf production levels, not a forecast directly tied to the increase in Kuwait cited in Reuters’ headline. The available version of the Kuwait report did not publish further details on production or what might happen to it later.