Opec: same quota, same secretary-general

Cartel sticks to status quo, keeping production levels - and El-Badri - in place

Opec agreed in early December to keep in place a 30 million barrel a day (b/d) ceiling on production, but called on producers to be vigilant in the coming quarters amid worries over global oil-demand growth, rising output in North America and weakness in the world economy. The producer group also reappointed Abdalla El-Badri as secretary-general, extending by one year the former Libyan oil minister’s tenure. He has been head of Opec’s secretariat for the past five years. The decisions did not come as a surprise to observers. "Opec has practised the art of sitting on its hands," said one analyst, "and that's what it has done today, too." Despite agreement on the ceiling, Opec’s communique str