In an address released Tuesday by the OPEC's Vienna headquarters, Yusgiantoro points out that today's record-high prices may slow down economic growth not just in industrialized oil-consuming countries, but in developing ones, as well. At the peak of the summer season, the prices of crude oil supplied by OPEC nations and Mexico may reach $37 per barrel, with the OPEC oil price bracket remaining at $22-28 a barrel.
Yusgiantoro confirms that the energy ministries of the OPEC member countries will gather for an emergency session in Vienna July 21. They will analyze the situation on the world's commodity markets to decide on how the balance between demand and supply could be restored.
At their previous session, held in Beirut on June 3, the OPEC members agreed to raise the production & export ceiling by 2 million barrels per day to 26 million bpd, and by an additional 0.5 million in August if the world oil prices fail to stabilize at an acceptable level by then.
