Finance ministers from the European Union called yesterday for the oil-producing countries to increase their production to counter the recent rise in oil prices writes Tim King in Brussels.
Mr McCreevy issued the call, on behalf of his colleagues, for "adequate supplies so that oil prices would remain consistent with stable, sustained growth in the world economy".
While the finance ministers acknowledged in their debate that current prices, if sustained, would hurt the EU economy, several of them also pointed out that fluctuations were not unusual.
At the conclusion of the meeting in Luxembourg, Mr McCreevy stressed that the EU was acting in line with the earlier comments by the finance ministers of the G8. He also pointed out that ministers had agreed that individual EU states should avoid unilateral action.
Officials took that to mean a warning against a unilateral reduction in fuel excise duty by one state lest it increase pressure on others to follow suit.
The finance ministers took a small but important step towards ushering in a new regime for taxing income from savings invested in another EU state.
The tax package depends on reaching satisfactory agreements for taxing investments held by EU citizens in non-EU states.
Yesterday the finance ministers formally concluded that arrangements negotiated with Switzerland, Andorra, Lichtenstein, San Marino and Monaco and with the EU's dependent and associated territories, such as the Channel Islands, amounted to equivalent measures.
This was a necessary precondition for the new EU regime but the ministers have not yet agreed on the start date.
In theory, an end of June deadline was set for reaching an agreement with third countries, to trigger the new regime from January 1st next.
But the date is in doubt because there is no guarantee that the agreement with the Swiss will be in place by then since it is possible the Swiss might have to put their measures to a referendum.
The finance ministers ruled that the Netherlands was running an excessive deficit higher than 3 per cent of gross domestic product, in breach of the terms of the Stability and Growth Pact on public finances.
They instructed the Dutch government to take corrective action - a move welcomed by the Dutch finance minister, Mr Gerrit Zalm, who has been an outspoken supporter of the pact.
