Dubai

IRAN is beginning efforts to boost oil production and exports amid a global supply glut after the removal of sanctions that shackled its economy and capped crude sales.

The Persian Gulf country is targeting an immediate increase in shipments of 500,000 barrels a day, Amir Hossein Zamaninia, deputy oil minister for commerce and international affairs, said on Sunday in an interview in Teheran. Iran plans to add another half a million barrels within months. The additional sales will push crude prices lower as markets are already oversupplied, said Robin Mills of Dubai-based oil consultant Qamar Energy.