( dpa ) - The price for crude oil produced by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) continued upwards ahead of a meeting by the 13 OPEC member states on Friday.
One barrel ( 159 litres) of crude stood at 88.39 dollars on Tuesday, compared with 87.18 dollars the previous day, the Vienna- based OPEC-Secretariat said on Wednesday.
OPEC calculates an average basket price based on 12 important brands produced by cartel members.
Analysts expect OPEC, who supplies about 40 per cent of the world's crude, to leave production levels unchanged at Friday's meeting, despite US calls on OPEC to increase output.
Leading OPEC members argued that the markets were well supplied, current high oil prices were not due to supply shortages.