UAE oil minister says would only boost output with OPEC

SEOUL (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates Oil Minister Mohammed al-Hamli said on Wednesday that any increase in the UAE's production would have to be agreed as part of an OPEC decision, dashing hopes it could follow recent Saudi boosts.

"The UAE is a member of OPEC, so any production decision should be made in an OPEC meeting," he told reporters on the sidelines of an oil and gas conference in the South Korean capital. The UAE is one of the few members of OPEC that would be able to increase output as it has spare production capacity.

Top exporter Saudi Arabia has increased output in recent months to its highest rate in decades and said on Sunday it stood ready to boost production further and invest billions in expanding capacity again if its customers demanded more crude.

(Reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Jonathan Leff)