#Trump, #Putin, Saudi Crown Prince Scramble to Fix Oil Markets with @georgikantchev, @AndrewRestuccia and @ScheckWSJ #OPEC #OOTT #US
@https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-putin-saudi-crown-prince-scramble-to-fix-oil-markets-11586523939 via @WSJ

In recent days, the Saudi crown prince has been huddled with top advisers in the kingdom’s remote northwestern desert trying to figure out a way forward for the Saudi economy. He and his deputies have discussed cutting the budget across government ministries by as much as 30%.

On March 1, Mr. Putin convened the heads of Russia’s oil companies in a conference room at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport. Those executives are longtime allies of Mr. Putin, and their support has helped him hold power.

Could Russia withstand a sharp decline in crude prices? Mr. Putin asked. The answer was a resounding yes. Low oil prices “are great because they will damage U.S. shale,” Igor Sechin, the head of the state-controlled giant Rosneft, told the assembled oil executives and officials.

In a few weeks, the view had changed. Russian oil executives began calling for Russia to seek a new deal with the Saudis. Ongoing tensions would amount to “a war of attrition which the U.S. will win,” said Leonid Fedun, vice president of Lukoil.

In Saudi Arabia, the financial and political situation is growing more serious. The new coronavirus is spreading in the kingdom. The economic fallout is spreading, too. Prince Mohammed has been working to bolster Saudi Arabia’s stock market by using government money to buy stocks

The kingdom has also continued a crackdown on officials and princes he accuses of corruption. Two senior princes who are potential rivals to the throne have been held for weeks. It also detained at least 10 social media influencers and intellectuals since the start of April.