The price of crude oil has plunged by 30 per cent after Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, said it would step up production from next month.It is the biggest drop in 29 years.

The decision by Saudi oil company Aramco over the weekend came in response to Russia's refusal to join the plan of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to cut supplies.

The new strategy adopted by Riyadh appears to target Russia and US shale oil firms, many of which are known to have high production costs and lose money when crude prices fall below 50 US Dollars a barrel for more than a few months.

Other OPEC producers, such as Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, are expected to follow Saudi Arabia's lead with price cuts and increased production from April.

The Saudi decision came after marathon talks at the OPEC Headquarters in Vienna, when the Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said that from 1st of April neither OPEC nor non-OPEC countries had any restrictions on production.