The Saudi oil minister has said prices could drop to as low as $50 per barrel if so-called cheaters within OPEC+ don’t stick to agreed-upon production limits, according to delegates in the cartel. The statements were interpreted by other producers as a veiled threat from the kingdom that it is willing to launch a price war to keep its market share if other countries don’t abide by the group’s agreements,

OPEC said in a statement on Wednesday that a Wall Street Journal article reporting that Saudi Arabia's oil minister had said oil prices may drop to $50 if the group's members do not stick to output cuts was "wholly inaccurate and misleading".

Part of the issue is that members are not sticking to their pledged cuts. The Saudi minister called out Iraq, which surpassed its quota by 400,000 barrels per day in August, according to S&P Global Ratings data. Kazakhstan, which overproduced by 120,000 barrels a day, was also singled out.