RIYADH, Nov 11: OPEC members Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, and Mexico, which is not part of the oil cartel, favour reducing world crude supplies, the official Saudi news agency SPA reported on Sunday.

During a meeting in Madrid, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nuaimi and his Mexican and Venezuelan counterparts, Ernesto Martinez and Alvaro Silva Calderon, “agreed on the need to take the necessary measures in the coming days to cut the current output surplus,” it said.

Oil majors Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Mexico are the largest exporters to the United States. Their 1998 agreement to slash output boosted oil prices which had fallen below 10 dollars a barrel.

“The three ministers believe that effective measures must be taken to restore balance to the market,” said SPA, quoting a statement issued after the meeting.

They concurred that “despite producers’ efforts to restore balance to the market, supply greatly exceeds demand, not only because of lower demand but also due to an increase in the output of non-OPEC producers,” it said.

According to SPA, the ministers concluded that “the current state of the market and forecasts of demand in 2002 require a special (effort) to prevent an aggravation of the imbalance on the market.”

For the first time in two years, crude prices had slumped under 20 dollars a barrel amid growing global recession fears since the Sept 11 attacks on the United States.—AFP