MANAOS, Brazil – Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez said Tuesday he expected oil prices to stabilise between US$80 and US$95 per barrel.
‘We hope that the price of crude oil will stabilise at 80, 90 or 95 dollars a barrel despite the (economic) crisis. Those are the estimations we have now,’ said Chavez upon arrival in the Amazonian city of Manaos, Brazil for a regional summit meeting with the presidents of Brazil, Bolivia and Ecuador.
Chavez stressed the need to still be ‘prepared to face any scenario,’ adding that ‘this (United States) crisis touched everyone on the planet.’
The leftist president, a staunch foe of the United States, added that the surge in oil prices to 140-150 dollars a barrel was ‘the result of speculation,’ and that ‘there was no real reason for oil prices to skyrocket.’
Venezuela, the largest crude oil producer in South America, produces 3,3 million barrels of oil a day, 2,7 million of which is exported, according to official figures. -Nampa-AFP
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