BOGOTA: Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries President Germanico Pinto said the group expects oil prices to stabilize as crude recovers from a slump in demand caused by the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

Oil will remain between about $70 and $80 a barrel this year amid a slight increase in global consumption, Pinto, who is Ecuador’s Minister of Non Renewable Natural Resources, said yesterday in an interview in Quito. The group is likely to leave output quotas unchanged when it meets next month, he said.
 
“The general trend is clear, towards a reasonable price stability,” said Pinto, in charge of energy for OPECs smallest member state. “We don’t see any crisis scenario this year.”

Oil has surged 85% in the past year amid signs of stronger global recovery after the economic crisis. Global oil demand reflects slow US economic expansion and sustained growth in China, Pinto said. So far, there is “no sign” OPEC will change production quotas, he said. The group will meet on March 17 in Vienna to review output targets.
 
While a global crisis isn’t resolved, spending by governments worldwide is spurring economic recovery that will prevent oil from returning to levels of $40 a barrel, he said.
 
Pinto, 46, took over the OPEC presidency on Jan. 1. Ecuador will hold the post for a year, according to the group’s Web site. Ecuador produced an estimated 476,000 barrels of crude daily last year, according to OPEC figures.
 
OPEC’s other members are Algeria, Angola, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela.