"We want to bring inventories down to a more normal levels," Falih said. "We need to stay the course and do that in the weeks and months to come."

Russia sees a range of options that would allow OPEC+ to continue output cooperation until year-end, from easing the limits to ending the extreme throttling-back that has seen some countries exceed original cutback targets.

Brent crude was up by 90 cents, or 1.3%, at $73.11 a barrel, U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 71 cents, or 1.1% higher, at $63.47 a barrel.

OPEC+ would take action to offset losses of Iranian supply if market fundamentals justified it. However, no policy changes will be made until the next full OPEC+ meeting in Vienna, in June.

Crudes are being priced at Dated Brent discounts between $15/b and $17/b, FOB, according to a PDVSA report.

Iran has sent abroad between 250,000 bpd and 500,000 bpd of oil so far in May, according to two industry sources who track the flows. Data from Refinitiv Eikon put crude shipments at about 250,000 bpd and exports of crude and condensate, a light oil, at about 400,000 bpd.

July ICE Brent crude futures were up 35 cents/b (0.48%) from Thursday's settle to $72.97/b, while the NYMEX June light sweet crude contract gained 41 cents/b (0.65%) at $63.28/b.

The region needs more peace and stability to ensure the flow of oil supplies, Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, Secretary-General of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, has said, noting that, "Any tension that occurs in the region affects the whole world."

Brent crude futures were at $71.06 a barrel at 0646 GMT, down 18 cents, or 0.3%, from their last close. Brent ended 1.4% higher on Tuesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $61.33 per barrel, down 45 cents, or 0.7%, from their previous settlement. WTI closed up 1.2% in the previous session.

The sanctions have already more than halved Iranian oil exports to 1 million bpd or less, from a peak of 2.8 million bpd last year. Exports could drop to as low as 500,000 bpd from May, an Iranian official told Reuters this month.