The Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC) has agreed to keep oil output at its current quota, causing a rise in oil prices.
The decision had been widely expected but prices were still affected worldwide, with US light sweet crude up 77 cents at $82.47 a barrel.
Before the meeting in Vienna, Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali al-Naimi had told Reuters that he was content with the way things are going and there was no need for a change in the quotas.
“There is no question there is agreement…keep things as they are. Good demand, reliable supply, beautiful prices — we are very happy,” he said.
Asked to comment on the group’s level of compliance with existing output targets, Naimi said: “Everything is relative — if there was no demand there would be no leakage.”
“I expect demand to continue to grow mainly from Asia,” he said, adding that global oil stocks fell by 28 million barrels in February.
