Saudi Oil Minister "Don't Call OPEC a Cartel !!!'

His Excellency Ali I. Al-Naimi,Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources,Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has a bit of a chip on his shoulder. The grand pooba of the world largest Oil Production Operation was interviewed on CNBC's "The Call" this morning. Melissa Francis was interviewing the Saudi and called OPEC a Cartel.  This hurt Al-Naimi's feelings. Or maybe he just woke up on the wrong side of the Camel:

Francis: When do you think we'll hit that $75-to-80 range that seem like almost everybody in the cartel agrees is sort of the equilibrium price?


Al-Naimi: You have to be careful calling OPEC a cartel. I resent that.


Francis: How come?


Al-Naimi: Cartel does not apply to OPEC. I know the press uses "cartel" in a derogatory manner, but it shouldn't be.


Francis: What's a better word?


Al-Naimi: It's an organization. 

Nonetheless, Francis told CNBC “Squawk on the Street” co-host Mark Haines and Erin Burnett she did not intend to use the word “cartel” to describe OPEC again.

“Let’s recap – they resent it, it doesn’t apply, it’s derogatory, they’re an organization,” Francis said. “And then he said to me afterwards, ‘You know, you don’t call G8 a cartel. There are a lot of other organizations you don’t call a cartel. Why are we a cartel?’ So I pretty much think it’s the new ‘C’ word. I know I’m not gonna use it again.”

Haines, in a show of defiance, continued to refer to them as a cartel.

“Cartel,” Haines replied. “Cartel, cartel, cartel. They’re a cartel. Somebody got up on the wrong side of the drilling rig. ‘You’d better be careful.’ Anyway, thank you Melissa Francis – they are a cartel.” (Source Businessandmedia)

I agree with Mark Haines, its a Cartel, the same way Saudi Arabia is a repressive regime whose government bans people from practicing other Faiths, who uses some of those oil dollars to fund terrorism. Maybe a better name for OPEC would be blood suckers.