Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said on Wednesday that the kingdom does not need to reduce the financial assistance it gives its citizens via low energy prices.

The world's top oil exporter is studying the possibility of increasing domestic energy prices, Al-Naimi said a week ago, but analysts say this is most likely to happen via small increases in petrol prices and a rise in power costs for industrial, corporate and other large-scale users.

He rejected the notion that Saudi Arabia's low domestic energy prices constituted a subsidy, because petrol and electricity were sold for more than the cost of production.

The cost of producing a barrel of crude oil in Saudi Arabia is among the lowest in the world: "We assist our people in their livelihood. But that's not a subsidy," he said.

"You only go back and take away assistance if you are in dire need. And, fortunately, Saudi Arabia is not today in such dire need," he added.