President Bush Urges OPEC to Boost Production

President Bush, visiting Saudi Arabia Tuesday, urged OPEC nations put more oil on the world market and warned that soaring prices could cause an economic slowdown in the United States, the Associated Press reported.

But Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil producer, will raise oil production only when the market justifies it, that country’s oil minister said in response to Bush’s request, AP reported.

Bush said that when consumers have less purchasing power, it could cause the economy to slow down, adding that it would be “helpful” if OPEC oil-producing nations could put more supply on the market, AP reported.

OPEC ministers next meet on Feb. 1 in Vienna, Austria, to consider increasing output targets. OPEC accounts for about 40% of the world’s petroleum supplies, and ministers often follow the lead of the Saudis when discussing whether to increase production to take the pressure off rising prices, AP said.

Saudi Arabia is responsible for almost one-third of the cartel’s total output.