Oil values rise following Opec report

Brent Crude Oil Futures have shot up following a report from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) today (July 11th).

The document revealed Iranian oil output has plunged to its lowest level in more than two decades, as tighter US and European Union (EU) sanctions have clamped down on the Middle Eastern country's export markets.

Iran has maintained these measures from the West have not affected its production of the commodity too severely, but the nation is losing an increasing number of customers.

New Opec forecasts also suggest international demand will be able to cope sufficiently with lower Iranian oil supplies through 2013.

At the beginning of this month, the EU implemented a full ban on imports of the black stuff from Iran, while South Korea has also stopped purchasing its crude, while demand from Japan, Turkey, China and India has decreased.

The sanctions, according to Opec's figures, have driven down Iran's production by 188,500 barrels a day for the month of June to 2.9 million - which is the lowest amount recorded since 1990.

Over the past few months, international bodies have been vocal in their disapproval of Iran's controversial nuclear development programme.

The Middle Eastern country insists its work is solely to enhance power generation and medical research, however some nations are concerned its government is creating large-scale weaponry.

These suspicions were fuelled when representatives of the International Atomic Energy Agency were denied access to some parts of Iran's nuclear development facility this year.

Demand for Opec oil is expected to drop to 29.6 million barrels a day next year and the need for Opec crude will be lower in 2013 on account of slower growth and improved supply from other parts of the world.

Meanwhile, Opec linchpin Saudi Arabia is continuing to pump the commodity at near-record levels, despite calls from other members to curb production to regulate values.

At 16:20 BST, Brent Crude Oil Futures were up 1.2 per cent to $99.1 per barrel.