Saudi Arabia has pledged again to pump more crude if required, but said what world consumers need most are refined fuels such as gasoline and heating oil. Crown Prince Sultan blamed a price spike that took US crude to $70.85 a barrel on a global shortage of refineries, not the crude to run in them. "We are concerned about the rise in oil prices and confirm the Kingdom's readiness to do its utmost to compensate for shortages in supply and to meet increasing demand," Prince Sultan was quoted by the Saudi Press Agency as saying at a reception hosted by the Saudi-American Business Council in New York on Wednesday."The current rise in oil prices does not stem from a shortage in crude oil supplies but is due to, as everyone knows, increased demand for products and a shortage in refining capacity..." he said. Crown Prince Sultan said the Kingdom had already increased its production to 11 million barrels per day. "We are working on further raising our output gradually to reach 12 million bpd by 2009," he told Saudi and US businessmen. He emphasized the importance of dialogue between producing and consuming countries to achieve world market stability. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meets in Vienna next week and its president has said he would propose the group raise its output by 500,000 bpd.