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Saudis spurn U.S. appeal to increase oil supply

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 Free Headline Alerts

LONDON — Saudi Arabia has defied a U.S. appeal, and has refused to increase crude oil production.

Saudi Oil Minister Prince Ali Al Naimi maintained that the global oil market was not experiencing a shortage, Middle East Newsline reported.

Addressing a conference in Paris on April 9, Al Naimi said that neither OPEC nor Riyad would raise production quotas, which he asserted was unconnected to record prices.

The statement came about two weeks after a visit to Riyad by U.S. Vice President Richard Cheney. Cheney, in an effort to press for higher oil production, met Saudi King Abdullah as well as Al Naimi.

"I am not going to pull back," Naimi said. "I'm not going to dump crude on the market. In my perspective, the oil market is well-supplied. The price is not at that level because of any shortage in supply."

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