Saudi Arabia will host a virtual special meeting Friday of energy ministers from the G20 major economies. This is in a bid to ensure "market stability" amid a coronavirus-led slump in crude prices.
The video call will follow an emergency meeting on Thursday of OPEC and other oil producers. This is to address the virus-sapped demand for crude and amid disputes between Saudi Arabia and Russia.
"The Saudi G20 presidency will hold an extraordinary G20 energy ministers' virtual meeting on Friday. This is also to foster global dialogue and cooperation to ensure stable energy markets," said a statement released Tuesday by the Saudi hosts.
"The G20 energy ministers will also act, alongside invited countries, and regional and international organizations. This is also to alleviate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the energy markets."
The global markets will also closely watch whether OPEC and other major producers led by Russia reach an agreement to reduce oversupply in talks on Thursday.
Ten oil producing nations from outside the wider OPEC+ alliance; including the United States have been invited to the meeting, Russian news agency TASS reported Tuesday.
