Vienna - The price for one barrel (159 litres) of crude oil produced by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) rose above 89 dollars for the first time in history. According to the Vienna-based OPEC Secretariat on Wednesday the price for one barrel was 89.13 dollars on Tuesday, up one dollar from the previous day.
Prices are buoyed by the weak dollar and strong demand. OPEC members pointed out that the hike's impact was softened by inflation and the weak dollar. Inflation adjusted, prices are still below the peaks reached in 1980.
OPEC, that had capped output in 2006, agreed in its latest meeting in September to raise production levels by 500,000 barrels per day as of November 1.
Further discussions about production increases may be expected at the upcoming OPEC heads of state meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 17 and 18, although several OPEC members expressed doubt that turning up the oil taps will bring down prices and control the market.
OPEC calculates an average price on the basis of twelve important brands from the cartel's twelve member states.
