KUALA LUMPUR (May 8): Saudi Arabia's minister of energy, industry and mineral resources Khalid Al-Falih said he is confident the agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC producers will be extended further, adding that the worst is over for the global oil and gas (O&G) industry.

"The producer coalition is determined to do whatever it takes in bringing stock level to five years average.

"Based on the consultation I have had with participating members, we are confident that the agreement will be extended to the second half of the year and beyond," he said during his speech at the opening ceremony of the 19th Asia O&G Conference today.

Meanwhile, he said the O&G industry continues to improve as supply and demand rebalances, adding that he expects healthier markets going forward.

He noted that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) inventories are gradually coming down, while US inventories are seeing a declining trend amid some fluctuation.

However, he said certain factors have slowed the impact of production cuts, namely the slow season of demand, planned refinery maintenance in the US, growth in non-OPEC supply — especially in the US — and the actions of financial players in the market.

"All of these have slowed the impact from the recent production cut exercise by 24 countries that joined together on Dec 10 last year.

"I do believe, however, that the worst is clearly behind us, with multiple leading indicators showed that supply and demand balance is in deficit, and the market is moving towards rebalancing, we expect healthier market going forward," he said.