Saudi Arabia and Russia are close to a deal on oil output cuts to reduce a global glut, a top Russian oil negotiator said on Monday, but details such as how to share out production curbs remained unclear ahead of talks planned for later this week.

Oil prices skyrocketed on Thursday after President Donald Trump told CNBC Saudis and Russia will ease pressure on oil, ending a price war that has contributed to crude’s massive plunge. He said that he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut production back by 10 million barrels or more after he spoke with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman on Thursday.

China has increased US crude purchases with some buyers snapping up cargoes at the widest discounts ever as sellers seek to offload excess supplies in Asia, six trade sources said on Wednesday.

President Donald Trump said he’s concerned oil prices have fallen too far and called Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss Russia’s oil-price war with Saudi Arabia. The leaders, who also talked about the spread of the coronavirus, agreed to discussions on oil between energy officials in the two countries, according to the Kremlin. The White House had no immediate comment and didn’t release a summary of the call.

The first oil refinery shutdowns in India and Europe were announced on Friday while global refinery runs drop like a stone in response to plunging demand as countries worldwide implement lockdowns.

A new OPEC+ deal to balance oil markets might be possible if other countries join in, Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said, adding that countries should also cooperate to cushion the economic fallout from coronavirus.

Confronted with a dizzying drop in prices, oil firms face a real challenge as they try to cut investment spending in order to survive a coronavirus-induced collapse in demand coupled with a Russia-Saudi Arabia price war, AFP reported.

Saudi Arabia’s state-run oil giant Saudi Aramco said Tuesday it would increase its crude oil production to 12.3 million barrels a day in April, a record amount. Aramco’s decision likely will flood global energy markets and put further pressure on prices.

The world’s financial services sector risks losses of up to $1trn if it fails to respond quickly to climate change and is hit by policy shifts such as the introduction of a carbon tax, a new report shows. The report by consultants Oliver Wyman, published on Friday, comes as pressure on the industry to accelerate efforts to help better allocate capital in the shift to a low-carbon economy ratchets up ahead of United Nations climate talks in November in Glasgow, Scotland.

The German cabinet backed plans last Wednesday to exit coal as an energy source by 2038 as part of efforts to protect the climate and restore the country's green credentials, news wires reported. “This is not just an exit from coal, it's an entry into renewable energy,” Environment Minister Svenja Schulze said cited by Reuters. “What the government is doing is setting in motion a huge and fundamental transformation in our energy supply,” Chancellor Angels Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters in Berlin.