VIENNA — Saudi Arabia signaled on Wednesday it was unlikely to push for a major change in oil output at the producer group's meeting this week. Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said he expected the oil market “to stabilize itself eventually.” OPEC's meeting on Thursday will be one of the most crucial in recent years, with oil prices having tumbled some 30 percent since June to below $79 per barrel due to booming US shale oil output and slower global economic growth. OPEC usually faces huge tensions from within but as talks over Iran's nuclear program ended with no breakthrough on Monday, most members felt relief they will not have to deal with a deluge of Iranian oil, currently hit by Western sanctions. OPEC produces 30 million bpd, or a third of global oil. Its own publications have shown in recent months that global supply will exceed demand by over 1 million bpd in the first half of next year. While the statistics speak in favor of a cut, the build-up to the OPEC meeting on Thursday has seen one of the most heated debates in years about the next policy step for the group. — Reuters
