Opec needs to consider steps to meet a seasonal downturn in oil demand in the second quarter of next year even though crude prices remain stubbornly close to $50 a barrel, the head of the oil producers' cartel said on Tuesday. "We are worried that in the second quarter of 2005, the demand will drop. Opec needs to think seriously what steps should be taken although the current oil price is still high," Opec president and Indonesia's Oil Minister, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, told reporters.
Ministers of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will meet in Cairo on December 10 to review production policy.
Purnomo said total cartel production was 30.5 million barrels per day (bpd), including 2 million bpd from Iraq. Opec's official output limits, which exclude Iraq, stand at 27 million bpd.
Opec has ramped up output this year above its self-imposed production ceiling to the highest levels since the late 1970s to try and dampen soaring oil prices that rose more than 70 percent from end-2003 to an all-time peak at $55.67 in October.
US light crude was trading 7 cents down on Tuesday at $49.69 a barrel, almost $6 off the record.
Ali al-Naimi, oil minister for the world's biggest exporter Saudi Arabia, said on Monday that global crude supply was running a "little bit ahead" of demand and inventories of refined products were building but were not high enough yet.
Opec's second-biggest producer, Iran, said on Monday the oil markets were oversupplied by about 2 million bpd and Opec should cut flows back to official limits.