The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is expected to maintain its curbs on crude production at a meeting Thursday to balance declining oil stocks in consumer nations, according to a senior Liberian official.

Before the meeting, the head of Libya's delegation Shokri Ghanem said OPEC ministers have agreed to keep the oil output steady, adding that a cut of 1.7 million barrels per day, or some six percent of suppliers, would be ensured.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali Al-Naimi, whose country is OPEC's No. 1 producer, backed the decision to maintain the reduced output. He said that since the state of market is comfortable, there is no need to make output change.

In October and February, 10 OPEC members bound by quotas agreed to total cuts of 1.7 million barrels a day, which analysts say have not been fully delivered.

In its monthly oil report on Tuesday, the International Energy Agency said that without Iraq and Angola, which are not bound by quotas, daily OPEC oil production last month stood at 26.8 million barrels a day. The energy watchdog said total OPEC output last month averaged 30.2 million barrels, 400,000 barrels less than OPEC should produce to meet world demand.

OPEC on Thursday increased its target by 180,000 more barrels a day between April and June than it forecast last month. The oil producing organization estimated it needs to boost output by a daily 150,000 barrels to 30.4. million barrels a day for the year.

Two cuts in the past four months have helped keep the benchmark crude between 50 and 60 U.S. dollars a barrel, down from the record highs of above 78 U.S. dollars a barrel last summer.

Source: Xinhua