Bush to discuss oil prices on trip to Saudi Arabia (Reuters)

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Bush to discuss oil prices on trip to Saudi Arabia
05 May 2008 17:59:20 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Adds comments from Bush)

By Tom Doggett

WASHINGTON, May 5 (Reuters) - President George W. Bush
is expected to talk with Saudi Arabian officials about the
effect record oil prices are having on the U.S. economy
during his upcoming visit to the kingdom, the White House
said on Monday.

"Whenever the president has discussions with leaders in the
region, he talks about the impact that high oil prices do
have on our economy and the impact that that has on the
world economy. So, I think you can expect the president to
make those concerns very clear," White House spokesman
Scott Stanzel said.

Saudi Arabia, a key member of OPEC, is the world's largest
oil producer and has the most unused oil output capacity.
However, the kingdom and other OPEC members have rejected
U.S. calls for the group to ramp up production to help lower
prices, saying the markets are well supplied with crude.

The price of U.S. crude oil hit a record $120.21 a barrel
on Monday at the New York Mercantile Exchange. The higher
oil price will likely be passed on to consumers at the pump,
as crude accounts for about 72 percent of the cost of making
gasoline.

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