The Saudi-led cartel said its members would start gradually pumping more oil in April.

Oil prices fell on Monday afternoon to their lowest level of the year after the OPEC oil cartel and its allies affirmed plans to gradually increase crude production beginning in April.

Opening the taps in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Russia, which have voluntarily throttled supply to prop up prices, increases the risk that the world could soon find itself with more oil than it needs. The group said it would raise production by 2.2 million barrels a day, or around 2 percent of global demand, over many months.

That would be good news for consumers, who generally benefit when energy costs less, but squeeze the profits of oil producers and the countries and states where they operate.

U.S. oil prices settled at $68.37 a barrel on Monday, down 2 percent. At that price it’s generally profitable to drill

Keep reading this article on The New York Times Energy & Environment.