Oil prices sank 5% Wednesday morning after OPEC+ delayed a meeting scheduled for this weekend to Nov. 30. 

The cartel gave no explanation for the delay, but reports have suggested it was due to Saudi Arabia's dissatisfaction with some OPEC+ members' compliance with voluntary production cuts. 

OPEC began a string of production cuts in November 2022 when it slashed production by 2 million barrels per day. The group cut daily production by an additional 1.66 million barrels in April after prices slumped to a more than 1-year low in March. OPEC has since extended the cuts several times, most recently through the end of the year.

Tighter supply and a seasonal spike in demand propped up oil prices over the summer. West Texas Intermediate fut🐎ures contracts rose 38% between late June and late September. But t🧜hey have since fallen about 20% amid concerns about slowing global growth. 

Falling oil prices have 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:taken some pressure off consumers, for whom the price of gasoline has steadily declined over the last two months. Today’s national average gas price of $3.34 per gallon is 32 cents, or about 9%, lower than a month ago. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Inflation has also eased amid declining oil and gas prices.

Shares of oil companies fell Wednesday. Oilfield services companies Baker Hughes (BKR) and Halliburton (HAL) each lost more than 1%, while producers Chevron (CVX) and ExxonMobil (XOM) traded in the red as well. 

Meanwhile, shares of airlines and cruise lines, for which fuel is a major expense, rose Wednesday. United Airlines (UAL), American Airlines (AAL), and cruise operator Carnival Corp. (CCL) each gained between 3% and 4%, while Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) and Delta Air Lines (DAL) rose about 2%.