Iran wants OPEC to cut 3mn barrels a day

OUTPUT CUT: Iran claims a cut of up to three million barrels a day could be on the cards at OPEC's emergency meeting. (Getty Images)

Iran said on Sunday that OPEC will consider an output cut of one to three million barrels per day (bpd) of oil in its upcoming meeting, the Mehr news agency reported.

"It seems that a (oil) production cut from one to three million bpd will be examined in the October 24 meeting," Iran's ambassador to the oil cartel, Mohammad Ali Khatibi, was quoted as saying.

"Iran is seeking a production cut to create stability in the market," he said.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is expected to announce on October 24 that it is cutting oil output to help lift crude prices that have dived 55 percent since reaching record highs in July, as a global economic slowdown has slashed demand.

The cartel's official production quota stands at 28.8 million bpd.

OPEC, whose 12-member countries together pump about 40 percent of the world's oil, said on Thursday that it has brought foward it special ministerial meeting in Vienna to October 24 from mid-November.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Friday said it is "absolutely scandalous" that oil producing countries are considering cutting production "so they can push up the price of oil."

"Currently, oil market fluctuations are very strong and producers have the right to bring stability to the market," Khatibi said.

On Thursday the price of Brent North Sea crude sank to a 17-month low point of 65.45 dollars a barrel, down from a record high of 147.50 just three months ago when supply worries had sent prices rocketing.

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