Bush presses Saudis to raise oil output

Riyadh: US President George W. Bush on Friday asked Saudi King Abdullah to help tame record oil prices but secured no concrete promises for an immediate increase in output.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister said separately that global oil supply is balanced with demand and market fundamentals are sound. "Supply and demand are in balance today ... The fundamentals are sound," Ali Al Nuaimi told reporters as Bush held talks with King Abdullah as crude prices soared.

On his second visit to the world's biggest oil-exporter this year, Bush renewed his appeal for more oil from Opec. "The Saudi government has reiterated their policy that it is willing to put on the market whatever oil is necessary to meet the demand of Saudi Arabia's customers," Bush's national security adviser Stephen Hadley said.