OPEC signals high oil prices may stay
Alex Lawler and Stephen Voss
2004-05-26 06:44
OPEC ministers said oil prices above US$30 a barrel may be here to stay, four years
after agreeing that US$25 a barrel is acceptable for both producers and consumers.
Crude closed at a record US$41.72 a barrel on Monday in New York.
Members including Iran, Nigeria and Venezuela said they want prices at the top end or
above the official Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) target of
US$22 to US$28. The Saudi oil minister, Ali al-Naimi, said crude at US$30 to US$34 a
barrel in New York reflects the current costs of investing and maintaining oil fields.
The nation is the world's largest oil exporter.
"We need to find a new band as a reference that will guide investors," Edmund Daukoru,
the adviser on oil to the president of Nigeria, OPEC's fourth-largest producer, said
in Amsterdam, where energy officials from more than 50 countries met for three days.
"It's unrealistic to think of US$22 as the floor."
New York crude oil prices have averaged US$29.17 a barrel in the past four years,
compared with US$19.84 a barrel in the previous four years, in part because of
agreements by OPEC to restrain supply. OPEC members have said the effect of inflation
and the drop in the value of the US dollar against other currencies such as the euro
means higher prices are warranted. Crude has been above US$30 a barrel since December
3, 2003.
Crude oil futures touched US$41.83 a barrel on Tuesday in electronic trading in New
York, 2 cents shy of the record set last week in two decades of trading. OPEC
ministers have argued that rising prices stem from conflict in the Middle East and
concern about potential gasoline shortages, rather than a lack of crude oil.
The more than 50 countries attending the ninth International Energy Forum, the
collection of oil producers and consumers that closed on Monday, agreed that oil
prices need to come down, without saying to what level.
The gathering "expressed concern regarding the current high price level," Dutch
economy minister Laurens Jan Brinkhorst said at a news conference. "Economic recovery
worldwide, and especially in developing countries, would benefit from stable oil
prices at a reasonable level."
US Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham also said current levels are too high and urged
oil producers to increase output.
(Tolong diatur bagaimana caranya agar harga minyak diatas US $ 100 /barrel , supaya
cadangan devisa kita semakin kuat. Kalau harga minyak naik maka harga gas dan batubara
pasti naik. Pedagang yang baik akan berusaha agar harga komoditasnya menjadi
setingi-tingginya.)
---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Friends. Fun. Try the all-new Yahoo! Messenger
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar.
Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/BRUplB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
***************************************************************************
Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. Menuju Indonesia yg Lebih
Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny. www.arsip.da.ru
***************************************************************************
__________________________________________________________________________
Mohon Perhatian:
1. Harap tdk. memposting/reply yg menyinggung SARA (kecuali sbg otokritik)
2. Pesan yg akan direply harap dihapus, kecuali yg akan dikomentari.
3. Lihat arsip sebelumnya, www.ppi-india.da.ru;
4. Posting: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
5. Satu email perhari: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
6. No-email/web only: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
7. kembali menerima email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
