Mexicans raise oil price 30 p.c.

Press, 4 January 1980, Page 5

Mexicans raise oil price 30 p.c.

NZPA-Reuter Mexico City Mexico has raised the prices of its top-quality crude oil by about 30 per cent from 5U524.60 per barrel to SUS 32 a barrel. The rise was effective from the first three months of this year and subject to an upward revision at any stage, an official communique said. The communique said the new prices were fixed after negotiations with clients and could be revised at any moment within the next three months because of uncertainty in the world oil market. Mexico, not a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, reviews its oil export prices every three months, increasing them in line with international levels. In its communique, the State oil monopoly. Pemex, reaffirmed its policy c; fixing prices according to market conditions. It said it would continue to deal]

directly with clients without participating in the speculative market. Pemex said in 1980 Mexican crude oil would be exported to the United States, France, Israel, Japan, Brazil, Costa Rica, Spain, Nicaragua, and Yugoslavia.

The statement did not indicate the volume of oil to be sold to the countries named but Pemex’s directorgeneral (Mr Jorge Diaz) said recently that Mexico had signed agreements to sell 776,000 barrels a day to the United States, 166,000 barrels to Spain, 100,000 barrels to France, 45,000 barrels to Israel and 25,000 barrels to Brazil.

The statement said average crude oil exports for January would be about 700,000 barrels daily, compared with an estimated production of 1,939,000 barrels. Mexico’s oil production for 1980 is expected to reach 2,250,000 barrels daily, with 1(1 million barrels earmarked for export, according to Pemex officials.