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OPEC said to agree to 1M barrel-a-day cut

Report: Informal accord to reduce production aimed at keeping price between $50-$55 a barrel.

October 4 2006: 11:03 PM EDT

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has agreed informally the need to cut production by at least 1 million barrels per day (bpd) to keep the price of its crudes above $50-$55, the Financial Times reported Thursday without naming sources.

It said the majority of the 11-member cartel supported a voluntary reduction, already undertaken last week by Nigeria and Venezuela, in an effort to stem a slide that has wiped nearly $20 or almost 25 percent off the price of crude since early August.

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A deal could be ratified at its next meeting in mid-December, the FT said. It quoted "OPEC insiders" saying that Kuwait, Iran and Libya had informally agreed to join Nigeria and Venezuela in cutting back, while the UAE is likely to do so also.

But it also reported that Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest exporter and most influential OPEC member, was unhappy with the broad move towards voluntary cutbacks and would prefer a public position when the group meets in the Nigerian capital Abuja in December.

However, the FT noted that Saudi Arabia had already quietly cut production by about 200,000 bpd over the past two months.

Oil prices rallied sharply on the report, with U.S. crude spiking more than 60 cents higher to above $60 a barrel.

Kuwaiti Oil Minister Sheikh Ali al-Jarrah al-Sabah raised the chance of broader action Wednesday, telling Reuters that Kuwait may also cut back if prices continued to fall sharply - the first of the powerful Gulf producers to take that position.

"OPEC is going to defend a price floor for its oil of $50-$55 a barrel," the FT quoted one OPEC official as saying. Most OPEC members have avoided putting any specific number on the price at which they would cut production, fearful that setting a specific level too high might upset consuming countries.

The OPEC basket of crudes stood at $55.27 a barrel on Tuesday and is typically around $4-$5 below Western benchmarks.

Oil traders said Wednesday that a rise in Saudi Arabia's monthly crude oil prices to European refiners may have signalled the kingdom's desire to reduce shipments by making them less price competitive with other grades.

Nigeria and Venezuela agreed to take 170,000 bpd of crude off the market from the beginning of this month, a token gesture against the cartel's total 30 million bpd production, and traders say they are waiting to hear Saudi Arabia's position.

Stocks of leading oil companies, including Exxon Mobil (Charts), Chevron (Charts), ConocoPhillips (Charts) and BP (Charts), ended higher Wednesday.