OPEC meet in November, crude price slides below $80

VIENNA: The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has scheduled a special meeting in November, as the cartel's crude oil price remained below $80 for the second day in a row on Thursday, the group announced on Friday.

One barrel (159 litres) of OPEC crude stood at $78.25 Thursday, rising $0.87 from $77.38 on the previous day, according to figures released by the cartel Friday.

OPEC oil ministers will meet in Vienna Nov 18 "to discuss the global financial crisis, the world economic situation and the impacts on the oil market", the organisation said in a statement.

Since the last meeting Sep 10, when the group agreed to cut overproduction exceeding the agreed output quotas, the OPEC crude price has dropped by $18.54 per barrel.

At that gathering, several members including Iran had asked for lowering output quotas to prop up prices.

"The organisation is concerned about the deteriorating economic conditions with contagion risks," the statement said.

OPEC calculates an average basket price based on 13 important brands produced by its members.