Qatar Oil Min: OPEC Action Unclear As Oil Prices Fluctuate

DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Qatar's oil minister Abdallah Al Attiyah said Sunday it was difficult to predict what action Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would take at their next meeting in October as crude oil prices were continuing to fluctuate. "Prices are just going up and down--it's too early to predict what action OPEC will take," Al Attiyah told Zawya Dow Jones. OPEC members are due to meet in Vienna on Oct. 14. Oil prices hit highs of almost $90 a barrel in early May and traded as low as in the high $60s towards the end of that month. Prices remained within the $70-80 a barrel range during June and July. Crude futures settled just below the $80-a-barrel mark Friday as Tropical Storm Bonnie swirled towards the Gulf of Mexico. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in September, hit $79.60 per barrel, a level last seen on May 5, before ending 32 cents lower to $78.98. London's Brent North Sea crude for September weakened 37 cents to settle at $77.45. The International Energy Agency, or IEA, said in a report earlier this month the dual impact of improving energy efficiency in industrialized nations and a gradual phasing out of economic stimulus in emerging markets like China--the fastest-growing oil consumer globally--would slow the pace of oil consumption next year. The Paris-based energy watchdog for 28 industrialized countries predicted that oil demand would grow by 1.35 million barrels a day next year to 87.84 million barrels a day. -By Tahani Karrar-Lewsley, Dow Jones Newswires; +9714 446-1692; Tahani.Karrar@dowjones.com Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 25, 2010 09:02 ET (13:02 GMT)