Those nations need oil money as much or more than oil-consuming nations need the oil.

But the agency's political bias toward oil-consuming nations sometimes leads it to produce assessments that some consider unrealistic.

But it's worth remembering that during the recession triggered by the Arab oil embargo, the oil-consuming nations lost a trillion dollars in income.

He called for a dialogue between oil-producing and oil-consuming nations to promote world growth.

Other large exporters are rushing to increase their sales to oil-consuming nations.

Representing large oil-consuming nations, the agency, based in Paris, tends to push for greater production and lower prices.

And its economy has rebounded as oil-consuming nations east and west turn increasingly to Russia for energy supplies.

That led the agency, which advises 26 oil-consuming nations, to reduce its forecast for global oil demand for 2005 by 70,000 barrels a day.

For oil-consuming nations like the United States and Europe, the picture is just the reverse.

While the producers quarrel, officials from large oil-consuming nations demanded increased production.