Saudi Arabia says it is committed to stable oil prices

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia will do all it can to stabilise global oil markets, though geopolitics and speculation as well as fundamentals are behind high prices, the state news agency said on Friday.

"Saudi Arabia looks with great interest to oil price stability in the global market that will protect the interests of producers and consumers equally and world economic growth, especially in developing countries," the Saudi Press Agency said.

"Saudi Arabia, as the world's biggest oil exporter, has not and will not spare any effort to achieve this aim. Its oil policy aims always to foster and strengthen cooperation and dialogue between oil producing and consuming nations."

It said that a meeting of crude producers and consumers called by Saudi Arabia tomorrow proved its commitment to market stability despite its conviction that oil prices are determined by "various market supply and demand factors, commercial stock levels in consuming countries and the effect on the oil market of political instability and speculation".