Oil crept higher as Saudi Arabia surprised customers in Asia by hiking prices for its main crude grade, signaling a vote of confidence that the market can absorb extra OPEC barrels.

OPEC oil output rose in June, a Reuters survey found, led by Saudi Arabia after an OPEC+ agreement to raise production, although the increase was limited as Iraq pumped below target to compensate for earlier overproduction.

LONDON: Saudi Arabia, Russia and six other key members of the OPEC+ alliance will discuss crude production on Saturday, with analysts expecting the latest in a series of output hikes for August. The wider OPEC+ group -- comprising the 12-nation Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies -- began output cuts in 2022 in