All countries agree on oil output cut deal, Saudi Arabia's Al-Falih says

All countries taking part in the November deal to cut oil production agree on the need to extend the supply cut agreement by another nine months.

Speaking from Riyadh on Sunday, Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih said there was unanimous support from all the nations that participated in the earlier deal.

"We think we have everybody on board [...] We believe that continuation with the same level of cuts, plus potentially adding one or two small producers if they wish to join, will be more than adequate to bring the balances to where they need to be by the first quarter of 2018," al-Falih said.

His remarks were made ahead of a 25 May meeting of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Iraqi oil minister Jabbar al-Luaibi on the other hand reportedly said that almost all countries had agreed to an extension of the output cut deal and that divisions remained on whether it should be prolonged for six months or nine months.

Oil producers' goal was to push OECD countries' oil stockpiles back down to their five-year average level of roughly 2.7bn barrels, versus slightly more than the then current 3bn barrels.

As of 0930 BST front month Brent crude oil futures were higher by 0.91% to $54.10 a barrel.