Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said on Tuesday the world's top oil exporter had raised output to 9 million barrels per day (bpd) in line with Opec's November 1 agreement, but offered no clues about the group's next meeting.
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) agreed in September to pump an additional 500,000 bpd from the start of this month, but that increment has failed to stop oil prices from surging to record highs near $100 a barrel.
The group meets on December 5 in Abu Dhabi to decide whether to make a second increase to help meet peak winter demand, heeding the call of consumer nations to prevent record energy costs from damaging an already fragile US economy.
"When we meet on the fifth we will look at all the information available, and decide accordingly, on whatever the information tells us about supply, demand, inventories," Naimi told reporters in Singapore, where he is due to speak at an energy conference on Wednesday.
Asked when Opec would increase supplies to the market, he said: "How do you expect me to know that?" Comments from the cartel's most influential policy-maker came after Iran's oil minister said at the weekend that some Opec members wanted to raise output, although most have said publicly that they do not believe the market is short of crude oil.
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