Opec may cut production more than 1 million bpd

OPEC secretary-general Ali Rodriguez said the exporters' cartel may consider a reduction in crude output of more than one million barrels per day following a further slide in oil prices last week, Reuters reported Monday.

Rodriguez, in Kuala Lumpur for an industry conference, said last week that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would probably cut production by one million bpd at its meeting on November 14.

Asked on Monday if a bigger cut was being considered because of subsequent price falls, he told a news conference: "It's a possibility but any firm decision will be decided at the November 14 meeting."

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is struggling to contain a slump in demand which has wiped 30 per cent off prices since September's attacks on the United States.

"Opec is facing several problems: the economic downturn, oversupply and high stocks not only for oil but also products, which has had a negative impact on price," Rodriguez said.

"The third problem that Opec faces is war," he said, referring to the military conflict in Afghanistan.

Benchmark US light crude slipped below $20 a barrel on Friday for the first time since July 1999 following a slew of poor economic data last week out of the United States, the world's biggest consumer of petroleum.

Opec has a target band of $22-$28 a barrel for its export basket price, which slumped to a fresh two-year low of $17.81 a barrel on Friday.

Rodriguez warned Opec could not by itself guarantee stable oil prices, saying it would need supportive action from exporters outside the cartel.

Despite a month of lobbying, Opec has managed only to get non-Opec Oman to agree to join any output cuts. Major exporters Mexico, Norway and Russia have said they will continue to pump at full capacity. (*)