WTI crude oil prices have eased slightly lower early on Wednesday after surging more than 1% higher during the previous session on reports the OPEC is considering deeper curbs on crude production. At the time of writing, WTI crude oil is trading around $54.06 per barrel, after rising as high as $54.16 on Tuesday.

According to a report on Reuters, OPEC+ nations are set to explore deeper cuts to oil production at their next meeting in December. The steeper production cuts are being considered to offset weakening demand for oil in global markets on the back of ongoing trade tensions and slowdown in economic growth.

During their last meeting in July, OPEC and its allies had agreed to extend their decision to reduce crude oil production by 1.2 million bpd till March 2020. However, despite this decision, oil prices have remained weak on account of the US-China trade war.

Prior to this news report, WTI crude oil prices were trading under pressure over concerns of weakening oil demand growth and expectations for a build-up in US crude inventories during the previous week. Economists are expecting US crude stockpiles to have grown by 3 million bpd in the last week.