London, August 10:

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) stands ready to pump more oil “as and when the need arises,” its president said. Sheikh Ahmad Fahad Al Sabah, who is also Kuwait’s oil minister, said in a statement that OPEC’s total output is 30.4 million barrels a day - and rising.

“These incremental volumes have led to global supply exceeding demand over the last two years, allowing stocks to continue to build to well above the five-year average,” he said, “the latest price increases had come from a series of refinery outages and geopolitical tensions.”

Crude prices edge higher

BUDAPEST: Crude futures edged higher, hovering above $63 a barrel as traders awaited US petroleum inventory data due on Wednesday. oil prices were expected to regainsome ground after a selloff on Tuesday after a US announcement that global oil demandwould increase at a slower pace. — AP