OPEC, allies to hold video conference meeting April 6: source

The OPEC group of oil producers led by top world crude exporter Saudi Arabia and its allies will meet Monday via video conference, a source close to OPEC said Friday.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday made a surprise call for a meeting of the OPEC group and its OPEC+ partners to "stabilise the oil market", which has been rocked by a price war between Saudi Arabia and the key player in the OPEC+ grouping, Russia.

The move followed a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince and de facto leader Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia called for the urgent meeting "of OPEC+ and a group of other countries", but it was not immediately clear which other countries would take part in Monday's meeting.

"Other producers are invited," the source close to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) told AFP but did not give further details.

Oil prices have tumbled in recent weeks amid a drop in demand and global economic uncertainty due to the new coronavirus epidemic.

Last month, OPEC and its allies failed to reach a deal on oil production cuts after OPEC+ leader Moscow refused to tighten supply to counter the effects of the coronavirus outbreak.