Major crude oil producer Iran said Friday that increased oil output wouldn't affect skyrocketing prices after Saudi Arabia revealed that the kingdom would pump more crude to market.
"Increases oil production does not have such an impact that it would decrease prices because enough oil exists in the global market," Iranian Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari was quoted as saying by the Mehr news agency.
"Just compare 300,000 (barrels a day) with about 86 million, which are the market's need! What would be the effect?" Nozari asked rhetorically.
A statement posted on Thursday on the website of the Saudi embassy in London said the kingdom would boost its daily oil output by 200,000 barrels.
Last weekend, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Saudi Arabia had told him it planned to increase production by 200,000 barrels a day in July. To date, the kingdom has not publicly announced such plans.
A Saudi official later said the statement was wrong, but didn't elaborate.
Iran is OPEC's number two producer, behind the Saudis, and has consistently argued that the high oil price has nothing to do with market fundamentals and OPEC's output should not be increased.
Jeddah hosts a meeting of the world's top oil producers and consumers on Sunday aimed at soothing rattled markets.