India calls for oil price band

Reining in speculators

"Questions have been raised about the fundamentals of the oil industry. There is a need for the oil industry to reassert its leadership in price formation and not remain a passive spectator of specution and paper trading in oil.  

"The global hydrocarbon community must address this situation through appropriate supply side responses and calm the oil markets," Finance Minister P Chidambaram said addressing the Energy Ministers meeting here.  

Chidambaram, accompanying Petroleum Minister as part of the Indian delgation to the summit, said the only way forward  for both the producers and consumers is to find a common ground.  
"We have a proposal that will instill mutual confidence. We propse that we adopt a price band mechanism. Consuming countries must guarantee that oil prices will not fall below an agreed level and producing countries must guarantee that oil prices will not rise above a guaranteed level," he said.  

In the band between these two levels, the minister said, let the prices be determined by market forces.  

"This is only way to shelter the world from volatility and unpredictability in oil prices." Cautioning the oil producers that they would also be sufferer in case the global economy slows down or slips into recession due to high oil prices, he said the current level of prices was in the interest of neither the producers or consuming countries.