(Bloomberg) -- Oil was steady after sinking to the lowest close in more than five months as traders counted down to a midweek OPEC+ meeting that’ll set production policy for September.

West Texas Intermediate was little changed below $94 a barrel after dropping almost 5% on Monday. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia will gather Wednesday to decide on output after the US urged Saudi Arabia to pump more.

Crude has opened August on a weak footing after declining for the prior two months on concerns that a global slowdown will eat into fuel demand. The drop has eroded all of the gains made since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in late February even as Washington and the European Union imposed a raft of sanctions on Russian energy exports.

Investors will also look to earnings and commentary from supermajor BP Plc on Tuesday after rivals including Shell Plc posted record profits. Oil prices are more likely to rise than fall as tightness in supply outweighs risks to demand, Shell Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden said last week.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.

Author: Yongchang Chin