The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, hoping to forge an elusive deal to cut oil output and halt a slide in crude-oil prices, said it will hold an emergency meeting in Qatar Thursday.
OPEC has grown alarmed in recent weeks over the sharp decline in oil prices, from a high of about $77 a barrel in July to below $6o last week. Oil ministers have declared that OPEC intends to slash output by one million barrels a day, or about 4%, to prop up prices.
Behind the scenes, the oil czars have failed to nail down the all-important issue of how to allocate the cuts among the membership. Thursday’s gathering in Doha-coming during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan- is a sign the cartel may be getting closer to putting aside its differences.
(Dow Jones Newswires, 16/10/2006)