Venezuela will propose production cuts at the next OPEC meeting in September if oil prices continue to fall, Energy and Petroleum Minister Rafael Ramirez said Tuesday.

"If there is a trend or dynamic toward lower oil prices, Venezuela will consider the possibility of a cut in production. This is the position that we will take at the next OPEC meeting" in Vienna in September, Ramirez said in remarks released by the ministry.

The abrupt drop in oil prices by "more than 20 dollars clearly shows that there has been speculation in the market," the minister said.

"The price must be maintained at a level close to 100 dollars, because the costs have increased," he said.

Oil prices have dropped to about 112 dollars a barrel after hitting record highs above 147 dollars last month.

The minister's comments promptly drove up oil prices on Tuesday. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September delivery, jumped 2.88 dollars to 114.65 dollars a barrel as a result, coming off early lows.

London's Brent North Sea crude for October rallied 2.65 dollars to 114.60 dollars.

Ramirez said the price of oil would continue to fluctuate in coming weeks and that OPEC could not allow the price of oil to collapse.

The minister, at a ceremony for the nationalization of the country's cement industry, said recent changes in oil prices could not be explained merely by supply and demand but by market speculators.

Venezuela has repeatedly stated its opposition to increasing production as a way of containing high oil prices, blaming a spike in the cost of crude on speculation.

Caracas says it produces 3.3 million barrels of oil a day, with 2.7 million destined for export. But the International Energy Agency estimated in June that Venezuela's production this year did not reach 2.5 million barrels a day.