OPEC crude price rises $1.67

The price of the 12-crude basket of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on Thursday rose USD 1.67 to settle at USD 109.58 per barrel compared to USD 107.91 pb on Wednesday, the cartel said Friday. OPEC''s bulletin said the annual basket average price came to USD 77.45 pb. Kuwaiti crude is one in a basket of 12 crudes produced by OPEC members, along with Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE), and Merey (Venezuela). Oil ministers of OPEC member states agreed, at a meeting held on June 8, on maintaining the current crude output ceiling, at 24.590 million barrels per day. They also agreed to keep close monitoring of the market conditions in the last quarter of the year