Feb. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuela will propose that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries further cut output next month amid declining prices, Finance Minister Ali Rodriguez said today on Venezuelan television.

Venezuela, Iran and Iraq have all indicated that OPEC is prepared to cut production again when it meets on March 15. The group agreed Dec. 17 on output constraints that would reduce supplies in January by 2.2 million barrels a day from December levels. That followed pledges to remove 2 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter of last year.

OPEC’s previous output cuts have successfully halted the drop in oil prices, Rodriguez said.

Crude oil for April delivery gained as much as 90 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $40.88 a barrel, on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract traded at $40.18 at 7:27 a.m. Prices have fallen 59 percent in the past year.

The 11 OPEC members with quotas, all except Iraq, reduced output by 3.8 percent to 25.3 million barrels a day in February, according to consultant PetroLogistics Ltd. of Geneva. That’s down from 26.3 million barrels in January, according to Conrad Gerber, founder of PetroLogistics. Members have a quota of 24.845 million barrels a day.

To contact the reporter on this story: Matthew Walter in Caracas at mwalter4@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: February 25, 2009 07:31 EST