Iran

Oil continued to rise higher, now over 7% sending Brent above $50 for the first time since October, after Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Wednesday OPEC was close to clinching a deal to limit oil output, adding Riyadh was prepared to accept "a big hit" on its own production and agree to arch-rival Iran freezing output at pre-sanctions levels. The comments was interpreted as a compromise by the Saudis who in recent weeks insisted that Iran fully participate in any cut.

With the last day of OPEC pre-negotiations almost over, the latest from Vienna is that Iran and Iraq appear to have softened their positions ahead of a crucial OPEC meeting on Wednesday, however as the WSJ reports, "it may not be enough to satisfy Saudi Arabia’s demands for a broad-based oil-production cut."

The two main wildcards remains Iran and Iraq, the latter of which has agreed to use independent estimates of its output at 4.55 million barrels a day, however Iraq has said it would only freeze from that level, not cut. 

One day ahead of OPEC's much anticipated meeting in Vienna, oil has slid back under $46 on rising pessimism that an oil production cut deal, taken widely for granted as recently as last week, is not going to take place.

Here is the latest rundown of events heading into the Wednesday meeting.

European stocks were little changed and oil fell as investors assessed declining prospects for an OPEC deal and risks from Italy’s referendum. Asian stocks declined, while S&P futures pointed to a fractionally higher open, erasing 3 points from yesterday's drop.

Trader attention today - and tomorrow - will be focused on oil which retreated back under $47 as OPEC members failed to bridge differences on production cuts, while a rally in metals ran out of steam. The rand plunged after President Jacob Zuma survived a leadership threat.

On Friday, after reading the latest shift in the ever-changing, always fluid OPEC narrative, according to which Saudi Arabia now demands Iranian oil production cuts contrary to the agreement reached at the end of September in Algiers, in which Iran was granted an exemption from the upcoming supply cut negotiation in Vienna on November 30, we were confused:

Wait so the Saudis demand Iran cuts production now after explicitly granting Iran an exemption in Algiers?

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 25, 2016