OPEC is deliberating a boost in oil supplies since unrest in Libya nearly shutdown the country's crude output Kuwait's oil minister said Tuesday. Oil prices took a tumble on global markets in response.
Should we be worried about Saudi Arabia? With dissent at the doorstep of the world’s largest oil producer, the Kingdom may be rich but it still has the same problems as its neighbours – high inflation and high youth unemployment coupled with demands for more freedom. Will it be reform or revolution inside the home to Islam’s holiest sites? Uncertainty is already weighing worldwide on prices at the pump.
Should we be worried about Saudi Arabia? With dissent at the doorstep of the world’s largest oil producer, the Kingdom may be rich but it still has the same problems as its neighbours – high inflation and high youth unemployment coupled with demands for more freedom. Will it be reform or revolution inside the home to Islam’s holiest sites? Uncertainty is already weighing worldwide on prices at the pump.
Iraq has announced a 24 percent leap in its proven oil reserves to 143 billion barrels, meaning the country trails only Saudi Arabia and Venezuela in terms of known resources.
Key OPEC member states say the organisation does not need to respond to increasing oil demand by raising its official output target, claiming current oil production levels are "balanced".
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries said Wednesday that its demand forecasts through 2010 remain mostly unchanged but warned of risks if economic recovery remains sluggish. Crude prices rose slightly but remained under $80 a barrel.
OPEC countries are applying reduced oil production quotas "satisfactorily", according to the Algerian energy minister, suggesting that oil prices may soon rise to between 50 and 55 dollars a barrel.
Oil prices dropped below 45 dollars a barrel in Asian trade after the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) opted not to cut production during a weekend meeting in Vienna.
OPEC ministers agreed to leave existing output targets unchanged out of concern for the global economy, but promised to enforce those curbs more strictly and said they would meet again at the end of May to review progress.
