EconSource: Saudi Arabia, Russia Agree to Freeze Oil Output
Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Venezuela announced a plan on Tuesday to freeze oil output at current levels after a meeting in Doha in an effort to help boost energy prices.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi and his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak met with Venezuela’s Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino, who has been pushing for a freeze on current production levels in recent weeks. The four countries agreed to freeze their oil output at January levels if other major oil exporters do the same. Naimi said that a freeze on producers’ output would be adequate to improve the oil market. “The reason we agree to a potential freeze of production is simply, it is the beginning of a process which we will assess in the next few months and decide if we need other steps to stabilize and improve the market,” he said. A Persian Gulf official said there is a “clear roadmap” of what countries to approach next to establish a more formal agreement on production. A source from the Iraq Oil Ministry also said the country is ready to commit to freezing its oil production at January levels if a deal is reached among the Organization of petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC countries. [Reuters, NYT, 2/16/2016] 
 
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Monday raised the cap on foreign currency deposits at banks to $1 million a month for exporting companies to ease restrictions that have led to manufacturing components piling up at ports. The new regulations give firms three months to earn foreign revenues through their exports, equivalent to the sum they deposit, to finance imports of components. The decision comes after the CBE raised the monthly cap on foreign exchange deposits from $50,000 to $250,000 last month for essential goods. Meanwhile, a CBE official said Tuesday that the bank is not moving towards devaluing the pound or floating its currency. “Thinking in this direction is absolutely untrue,” an unnamed central bank official said in response to speculation that Egypt might allow the pound to weaken against the dollar. [Reuters, Bloomberg, DNE, 2/15/2016]
 
A delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will visit Tunisia on Thursday to begin talks on a new credit program likely to be worth at least $1.7 billion, a Tunisian official said. The new IMF program will succeed a two-year deal agreed to in 2013 that totaled about $1.74 billion. The deal had been extended by seven months in an effort to buy time for Tunisia to put banking and fiscal reforms in place. Under the program, Tunisia agreed to follow certain economic policies, such as keeping its deficit under control and making the foreign exchange market more flexible. On Saturday, Governor of the Central Bank of Tunisia Chedly Ayari met with Prime Minister Habib Essid to discuss Tunisia’s economic situation and preparations for the IMF visit. [Reuters, 2/15/2016]
Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi offered to pay the salaries of employees of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) if it agrees to halt its independent oil exports. “Give us the oil and I will give every employee in Kurdistan [their] salary,” Abadi said in an interview with Iraqiya state television. Iraqi Kurdistan has been independently exporting crude via Turkey since a deal with Baghdad on oil and revenue-sharing collapsed last year. Abadi, who previously put Kurdistan’s oil exports at over 600,000 barrels per day, said this amounts to the region’s share of the federal budget, which Baghdad is withholding. “Exports from the region represent around 16 percent of the oil exported . . . from all Iraq, so the region has obtained its [share of the] budget,” he said. [AFP, 2/15/2016]
 
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Saudi Arabia, Russia agree to freeze oil output
Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Venezuela announced a plan on Tuesday to freeze oil output at current levels after a meeting in Doha in an effort to help boost energy prices. Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi and his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak met with Venezuela’s Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino, who has been pushing for a freeze on current production levels in recent weeks. The four countries agreed to freeze their oil output at January levels if other major oil exporters do the same. Naimi said that a freeze on producers’ output would be adequate to improve the oil market. “The reason we agree to a potential freeze of production is simply, it is the beginning of a process which we will assess in the next few months and decide if we need other steps to stabilize and improve the market,” he said. A Persian Gulf official said there is a “clear roadmap” of what countries to approach next to establish a more formal agreement on production. A source from the Iraq Oil Ministry also said the country is ready to commit to freezing its oil production at January levels if a deal is reached among the Organization of petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC countries. [Reuters, NYT, 2/16/2016]

Egypt raises deposit cap to $1 million for exporters
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Monday raised the cap on foreign currency deposits at banks to $1 million a month for exporting companies to ease restrictions that have led to manufacturing components piling up at ports. The new regulations give firms three months to earn foreign revenues through their exports, equivalent to the sum they deposit, to finance imports of components. The decision comes after the CBE raised the monthly cap on foreign exchange deposits from $50,000 to $250,000 last month for essential goods. Meanwhile, a CBE official said Tuesday that the bank is not moving towards devaluing the pound or floating its currency. “Thinking in this direction is absolutely untrue,” an unnamed central bank official said in response to speculation that Egypt might allow the pound to weaken against the dollar. [Reuters, Bloomberg, DNE, 2/15/2016]

IMF to start talks with Tunisia over new loan program
A delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will visit Tunisia on Thursday to begin talks on a new credit program likely to be worth at least $1.7 billion, a Tunisian official said. The new IMF program will succeed a two-year deal agreed to in 2013 that totaled about $1.74 billion. The deal had been extended by seven months in an effort to buy time for Tunisia to put banking and fiscal reforms in place. Under the program, Tunisia agreed to follow certain economic policies, such as keeping its deficit under control and making the foreign exchange market more flexible. On Saturday, Governor of the Central Bank of Tunisia Chedly Ayari met with Prime Minister Habib Essid to discuss Tunisia’s economic situation and preparations for the IMF visit. [Reuters, 2/15/2016]

Iraqi Prime Minister offers Kurds salaries for oil
Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi offered to pay the salaries of employees of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) if it agrees to halt its independent oil exports. “Give us the oil and I will give every employee in Kurdistan [their] salary,” Abadi said in an interview with Iraqiya state television. Iraqi Kurdistan has been independently exporting crude via Turkey since a deal with Baghdad on oil and revenue-sharing collapsed last year. Abadi, who previously put Kurdistan’s oil exports at over 600,000 barrels per day, said this amounts to the region’s share of the federal budget, which Baghdad is withholding. “Exports from the region represent around 16 percent of the oil exported . . . from all Iraq, so the region has obtained its [share of the] budget,” he said. [AFP, 2/15/2016]

Also of interest
Saudi Arabia said to ease lending rules to boost liquidity | Bloomberg
Dubai January inflation falls to 1.9 percent as gasoline drops | Reuters
Bahrain opens books to raise $500 million through a bond re-tap | Reuters
Iraqi grain board chief to be investigated in graft case | Reuters
Italy’s Eni invested $4 billion on first phase of Egypt’s Zohr gas field | Reuters
Egypt backtracks on farmer subsidy reform | Reuters
Egypt’s jobless rate eases to 12.7 percent in Q4/2015 | Ahram Online
Egypt’s banks direct foreign currency to importers amid dollar shortage | DNE
Libya’s inflation hits 11.4 percent in September | Libya Monitor (subscription)
Libyan naval forces in Tripoli say seized foreign oil tanker | Reuters
Algeria discussing possible loan with European Investment Bank | Ennahar
Turkey Deputy PM calls for reforms to lower unemployment | Hurriyet
Turkish lira falls to two week low | Bloomberg