In shift, Saudi Arabia says oil prices high enough, urges more OPEC produc

[Kadie]

In shift, Saudi Arabia says oil prices high enough, urges more OPEC production

ABDULLAH SHIHRI, Associated Press Writer
Monday, May 10, 2004

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(05-10) 13:21 PDT RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) --

In a significant shift, Saudi Arabia's oil minister said Monday that crude prices have risen far enough, and he will urge OPEC to increase production, reversing an output cut that began just last month.

The change in Saudi oil policy, Oil Minister Ali Naimi said, is due to concern that high prices could hurt the world economy and reduce demand for oil. Oil prices have risen steadily in recent weeks, with U.S. crude oil prices touching $40 a barrel on Friday.

"It is certain that the kingdom believes that increasing the OPEC production ceiling is essential to keep supply and demand balanced," Naimi said in a statement.

He said the increase, which he planned to propose at a June 3 meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, should "not be less than 1.5 million barrels a day."

more... http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/05/10/financial1511EDT0162.DTL

[dweller]

1. mark my words

the price will NOT come down regardless of amount of production.

get used to $2/gal and up...it's here to stay.
dp

[SoCalDem]

2. Makes no sense. If the price is "high enough" now, why

increase production (which will only cause them to drop)..??

Just another clumsy attempt to pull the wool over our eyes..

What they really mean is this:

Oil compnies have had record windfall profits...
GeorgieBoy has "f"-ed up everything he touches, so maybe a drop in gas prices will help the poor little gnome.
The stupid Americans will be happy to pay $2 a gallon (almost double last year's prices) because they have had a taste of really high prices..

[never cry wolf]

4. Merely priming the pump

for the promise to lower prices before the election as came out in Woodward's book?

"It's not payback for favors granted, geeze, prices were just high enough!!"

[crossroads]

8. How gullible is the public ...

to pay the ransom gladly.
:mad:

[hughee99]

5. For the same reason

that drug dealers try to keep prices relatively lower. If prices get and stay too high, countries will look for other alternatives more aggressively. You'd see an explosion of hybrid cars, and possibly a few new nuclear, and hydroelectric power plants. If gas prices stay this high, or go higher, I think * will see less opposition to drilling in ANWR. They want to keep people hooked on their juice.

[phantom power]

10. to keep us dependent

He actually comes right out and admits it (my capital emphasis):

>> "high prices could hurt the world economy and REDUCE DEMAND for oil"

They're walking the line: they want to keep prices high enough to stay rich and powerful, but not so high that people finally get sick of it and start getting serious about reducing oil dependence.

Hopefully, people don't fall for it, but they fell for it last time, when prices dropped after the 70s embargo.

[TrogL]

3. Dubya's gonna be pissed

Prices were supposed to stay high until October

[drfemoe]

6. Oil shares fall on Saudi call for more OPEC output

NEW YORK, May 10 (Reuters) - Shares of U.S. oil companies fell on Monday after a call by Saudi Arabia's top energy official for increased production by OPEC members sent oil prices lower.

Oil futures slipped more than a dollar a barrel in early trade as Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said OPEC members should increase output by 1.5 million barrels a day to prevent high crude prices from derailing global economic growth.

Oil was down 90 cents at $39.03 in mid-morning trade after rising to $40 on Friday for the first time since 1990.

While prices remain well above historic averages, the decline prompted investors to sell oil company stocks. Big U.S. independent exploration and production company XTO Energy (nyse: XTO - news - people) fell $2.04, or 7.5 percent, to $25.02, while Devon Energy <DVN.A> declined $3.18, or 5.1 percent, to $59.25 a share.
<snipped>
http://www.forbes.com/business/energy/newswire/2004/05/10/rtr1365701.html

[Just Me]

7. The cat is already out of the bag. They can't fix that!!! *eom*

[reprobate]

9. In the market for an SUV?

Wait till next summer and the price per gallon will likely go over three dollars a gallon. There'll be some good bargains on used SUVs then.