OPEC likely to keep output level flat

The oil market will do Wednesday as it always does when the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries meets, keeping a close watch on developments despite overwhelming expectations that the cartel will leave its output quota unchanged, CBS.MarketWatch.com reported Tuesday.

As members gather in Vienna, OPEC is essentially "handcuffed" on the question of whether to change production levels, said John Kilduff, a senior vice president of energy risk management at Fimat.

"With the global economy not at all that encouraging, they risk locking in a more severe recession if prices move significantly higher," Kilduff said, noting they would run the risk of losing market share to non-OPEC producers, as well.

The cartel's member nations account for nearly 40 percent of the world's oil output. (*)