"More than 350 mln barrels of oil supply have been removed in a joint effort," he said.

ST. PETERSBURG, July 24. /TASS/. The oil production cut deal between OPEC and non-OPEC nations removed 350 mln barrels of crude oil from the market in six months, Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Monday.

According to Novak, global reserves of oil and petroleum products have declined for the first time in three years. The reserves in OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries dropped by 90 mln barrels of oil.

The minister also said that for the first time since 2014, global investment in the sector reversed to growth, "which will help avoid a potential deficit in the future."

In December 2016, OPEC and a number of countries outside the cartel agreed to withdraw 1.8 million barrels per day from the oil market in the first half of 2017. The goal of the alliance is to reduce global oil reserves to an average level of five years. On May 25, OPEC and non-OPEC countries agreed in Vienna to extend the existing level of oil production cut until April 2018.