According to PIN, Iran's export crude price slipped $2.86 to $48.78 per barrel on Tuesday April 21, National Iranian Oil Company international affairs reported.

The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes also dropped to $48.49 a barrel on Tuesday April 21, 2009, compared with $49.59 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

OPEC's daily basket price is published with a 24-hour delay and serves as the reference price for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

The new OPEC Reference Basket (ORB), implemented as of 10 September 2007, is currently made up of Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Minas (Indonesia), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and BCF 17 (Venezuela(.

OPEC accounts for about 40 percent of the world's oil production and currently its member states produce an average of 27.904 million barrels a day.