Clinton says doing all he can to boost OPEC output
© 2000 Reuters Limited
June 29, 2000
Story by Doug Palmer
WASHINGTON - Responding to criticism from Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, President Bill Clinton yesterday defended the efforts he has made to encourage OPEC to boost oil production.
"Obviously I've done all that I could in a way I felt was most effective to increase production, and I will continue to do that," Clinton said at a White House news conference.The Texas governor, who has longstanding ties to the oil industry, this week asserted he could better at persuading key U.S. allies like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to increase production.
But that view is "a simple answer to a complex problem," Clinton said. "It's not just a question of how much oil is being pumped."
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries has already made two decisions this year to increase production, "although not as much as we would like," Clinton said. Still, with the exception of Saudi Arabia, most OPEC members are producing at close to capacity, he said.
By holding back, "it's clear that they (Saudi Arabia) were trying to maintain some sort of harmony within the OPEC family," he said.
OPEC agreed earlier this month to increase its output by 708,000 barrels per day, a level that fell short of the 1 million bpd increase that some industry analysts said was needed. The 11-member cartel has been trying to carefully calibrate its production to keep prices above $25 a barrel, but below a level that might encourage new oil drilling or fuel conservation by consumers and businesses.
Clinton brushed off the suggestion that Bush would have more luck with OPEC.
"We all rate our power of persuasion differently, you know, and our powers of persuasion sometimes work when the people's interests are involved and sometimes don't," he said.
Clinton noted that Bush had advocated high oil prices in the early 1990s.
"I'm glad he changed his position anyway. It's amazing how a few years will do that," Clinton said.