TEHRAN– The price of Iran’s heavy crude fell in August in line with declines across OPEC’s basket of crudes, the producer group said in its latest monthly report.

Iran’s heavy crude averaged $69.18 a barrel in August, down $1.63 from $70.81 in July. The year-to-date average stood at $71.69, compared with $82.86 in the same period of 2024.

The OPEC basket averaged $69.73 a barrel in August, a month-on-month drop of $1.24. So far this year, it has averaged $71.61, down from $83.04 in the same period last year.

Benchmark Brent crude dropped $2.71 a barrel in August, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate fell $3.29 for forward delivery.

OPEC crude production rose by 478,000 barrels per day (bpd) in August to 27.95 million bpd, the report said, citing secondary sources. Iran’s output slipped by 27,000 bpd to 3.22 million bpd.

Production by OPEC’s allies in the wider OPEC+ group rose by 31,000 bpd to 14.45 million bpd. Combined OPEC+ output stood at 42.40 million bpd, an increase of 509,000 bpd from July.

OPEC left its forecast for global oil demand growth unchanged, expecting consumption to rise by 1.29 million bpd this year. The group said the global economy is maintaining strong growth momentum in the second half of 2025.

The upbeat outlook came shortly after OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to raise production quotas from October, as Saudi Arabia, the group’s largest producer, seeks to regain market share.

EF/MA