OPEC to keep output same at next meeting

23. Feb. 2010

ALGIERS - OPEC is likely to keep oil output unchanged at its next meeting in March, Algeria's top energy official said on Monday.

"I do not think there will be an increase and I do not think we will reduce production," Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil told reporters on the sideline of an industry event in Algiers.

"I think we will keep output unchanged because prices are now good and demand will rise," he said.

Oil prices edged back to just below $80 a barrel after earlier touching a six-week high of $80.51 on refinery strikes in France and tensions about Iran's nuclear program.

"Prices are now good," Khelil said. "They are between $70 and $80. We expect demand to go up in the third and fourth quarter."
[Reuters]