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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Opec refuses oil production cuts | Opec refuses oil production cuts |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| Opec energy ministers have decided to leave oil production quotas unchanged after talks in the Egyptian capital following falls in the price of oil. | Opec energy ministers have decided to leave oil production quotas unchanged after talks in the Egyptian capital following falls in the price of oil. |
| Opec President Chakib Khelil said any such decision would be made at a meeting in Algeria next month. | Opec President Chakib Khelil said any such decision would be made at a meeting in Algeria next month. |
| The price of a barrel of oil has tumbled to below $55 after peaking at a record $147 in mid-July. | |
| Opec members have lost billions of dollars as demand has dropped in the face of the global economic downturn. | Opec members have lost billions of dollars as demand has dropped in the face of the global economic downturn. |
| Opec member Venezuela favours a cut in output of a million barrels a day to try to boost prices. | Opec member Venezuela favours a cut in output of a million barrels a day to try to boost prices. |
| But several Opec ministers had already dampened expectations that a cut in production would be announced this weekend. | But several Opec ministers had already dampened expectations that a cut in production would be announced this weekend. |
| Balancing demand | Balancing demand |
| After Saturday's meeting, Opec President Chakib Khelil said ministers had agreed "to take any additional action on 17 December to balance oil supply and demand". | After Saturday's meeting, Opec President Chakib Khelil said ministers had agreed "to take any additional action on 17 December to balance oil supply and demand". |
| Falls in demand in the US, the world's top energy consumer, and other industrialised countries, have helped drive prices down from a record peak of more than $147 a barrel. | Falls in demand in the US, the world's top energy consumer, and other industrialised countries, have helped drive prices down from a record peak of more than $147 a barrel. |
| Opec, which accounts for 40% of global oil production, cut output by 1.5 million barrels a day last month, but the move failed to stop prices from declining. | Opec, which accounts for 40% of global oil production, cut output by 1.5 million barrels a day last month, but the move failed to stop prices from declining. |
| While cartel members have not ruled out making another output cut, some say the impact of the existing cuts still have to be felt. | While cartel members have not ruled out making another output cut, some say the impact of the existing cuts still have to be felt. |
| "Combined with weakening non-Opec supplies, the projected...output curtailment suggests that the oil market could actually tighten moving into 2009," Barclays Capital said in a research note. | "Combined with weakening non-Opec supplies, the projected...output curtailment suggests that the oil market could actually tighten moving into 2009," Barclays Capital said in a research note. |