OPEC's Dollar Concerns

As mentioned in previous posts the falling U.S. dollar's effect on oil revenues overshadowed Saudi Arabia's promises to fight global warming at this weekend's Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries summit in Riyadh, so now even the global warming will be affected by this situation.

Saudi Arabia had to fight off an attempt by Iran and Venezuela to get the group to discuss pricing oil in different currencies. Hosting the summit, King Abdullah committed $300 million to research climate change, while OPEC leaders pledged to cut emissions from oil and gas production.

The Ministers at the summit said the oil market was well-supplied and recent gains were due to speculation and beyond the group's control...so all this crude situation as alerted by our WorldWatch office has its roots in SPECULATION...The dollar's 10 percent decline this year, record oil prices above $90 a barrel, has SPECULATION has no limits ?...OPEC is in a price paralysis conundrum but we all require the stability of the oil market, this is essential to world economy.

Gulf Arab countries, most of whose currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar, will jointly consider a revaluation in December in a bid to combat inflation, Abdul Rahman al-Attiyah, the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council said in Riyadh today. The council includes OPEC members Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

The final declaration from OPEC's third heads of state summit reiterated the group's commitment to ensuring stable energy supplies and promise to reduce carbon emissions from oil and gas production.

OPEC energy ministers have their next meeting to discuss oil production in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 5.

OPEC supplies more than 40 percent of the world's oil, is gaining influence on the back of high prices. Importing nations have transferred $3 trillion more to OPEC than they would have since 2001 had oil prices stayed near $20 a barrel, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

So now Ecuador will re-join Dec. 5 as the group's 13th member. The South American nation left the organization 15 years ago.