The intergovernmental consortium has decided not to further reduce the amount of crude oil exported in fear of damaging the global economy.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) controls 40% of the world’s oil. The decision came at a meeting in Vienna, and it was unclear as to what OPEC would decide, given that Algeria and Libya were calling for an output cut, but Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and Ecuador were all opposing such action.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly said that it would like to trade oil at a fair price of about $75 per barrel. But it is now expected that the price will fall even further after OPEC’s decision.

At the time of the decision, oil prices were about %100 lower than the all time high experienced last year, trading at around $45-50 per barrel.

More recently however, crude oil price has reached a four-month high, trading at $54 per barrel. This is due to growing crude production and U.S. stockpiles, despite a fall in demand in the current economic climate.