Saudi Arabia's Petroleum, Mineral Resources Minister To Visit Russia, Mexico On Eve Of Opec Conference

In the beginning of November Ali Ibrahim Naimi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia, will make working visits to Russia and Mexico. They will be held before a conference of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, to be gathered in Vienna on the issue of oil prices. This was published on Thursday, with reference to knowledgeable sources in Riyadh, by the Saudi newspaper Al-Sharq al-Awsat, reports the RIA Novosti correspondent. Ali Ibrahim Naimi will go on these trips after a conference of the petroleum ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Oman Sultanate, due in Abu Dhabi on October 27. Saudi Arabia is a major exporter of oil -- the volume of sales of Saudi oil reaches 11 percent of the total amount sold on the world market. OPEC's share in the world export of oil is 40 percent. After September 11 oil prices have fallen off by an average of 25 percent. Most OPEC countries say that the production of oil is again to be axed to stabilize prices at a level of 25-28 dollars per barrel.