Russian oil giant Rosneft has trimmed its oil output amid a continued slide in crude prices, as an under-pressure OPEC mulls taking similar action.

Rosneft said Tuesday it had cut its daily output by 25,000 barrels because of “market conditions”. The token reduction represented less than one percent of the behemoth’s total and did nothing to boost energy prices on depressed global commodity markets.

The announcement, given in a company statement, came after Rosneft chief executive Igor Sechin held talks with officials from Mexico and OPEC members Saudi Arabia and Venezuela in Vienna, the venue for Thursday’s key meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

The meeting is the most significant in recent years for OPEC, whose dozen members together pump out about one-third of the world’s crude.

The Vienna-headquartered cartel is under pressure from its poorer members like Venezuela and Ecuador to cut output after tumbling prices have slashed their precious revenues.

Crude futures have sunk by over 30 percent since June to four-year lows on the back of plentiful oil supplies, a strong dollar and worries about stalling energy demand in a weak global economy.

– ‘Price not good’ –

Oil prices tumbled again Tuesday, with the US benchmark down 2.2 percent, on expectations that the OPEC cartel will not agree to cut output.

The key US futures contract, West Texas Intermediate for January delivery, dived $1.69 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, closing at $74.09 a barrel, its lowest level since mid-September 2010.

Meanwhile Benchmark Brent North Sea crude for delivery in January fell to $78.33 a barrel in London, down $1.35 from Monday’s close.

Both fell even further Wednesday, with West Texas Intermediate dropping 40 cents to $73.69 and Brent easing 31 cents to $78.02.

However the cartel’s Gulf members, led by kingpin Saudi Arabia, have rejected calls for a cut unless they are guaranteed market share in the highly competitive arena, according to analysts.

Despite the apparent differences, OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers Tuesday agreed that crude prices have fallen too far, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Rafael Ramirez said.

“We agreed that the price is not good. Everybody is worried,” he told reporters.