(Bloomberg) -- OPEC+ should take into account the “very fragile” state of the global economy when deliberating deeper supply cuts during their upcoming meeting, the head of the International Energy Agency said Tuesday.

“It will be very important that the OPEC+ countries consider the very fragile global economic situation,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in an interview. “Some of their main clients are about to slide into recession.”

Ministers meeting this weekend also should take note of conditions in developing countries, he said.

International oil prices remain high, stoking inflation and posing a headwind for economic activity. The OPEC+ alliance led by Saudi Arabia nonetheless announced production cuts this month and next, a move Birol wants the group to reconsider.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman has defended the cutbacks, saying at the COP27 climate talks in Egypt this month they were necessary to offset extreme economic “uncertainties.”

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