Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday that the OPEC+ group agreed to start increasing oil production from April, but could reverse the decision afterwards if there are market imbalances.

He said Russia produced less oil in February than the quota it agreed with the OPEC+ group, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies.

The increase is the first since 2022 from OPEC+.

Eight OPEC+ members that are making the group's most recent layer of output cuts held a virtual meeting on Monday and agreed to proceed with the April increase. The increase is 138,000 barrels per day according to Reuters calculations.

Novak told reporters that the group will go ahead with the April increase, but after that it may consider other steps.

"I there is an imbalance in the market, we can always play in the other direction," he said

(Reporting by Olesya Astakhova, writing by Vladimir Soldatkin, editing by Christina Fincher and Tomasz Janowski)