IEA chief insists Saudis pumping more oil

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is pumping more oil than it reports, the head of the International Energy Agency said on Thursday despite OPEC officials' and customers' views that volumes were unchanged.

"We think from what we learnt in our study there's a gap from what they report and what they produce. Is it intentionally? I don't know. But we are simply saying that Saudi is producing more than they report," Nobuo Tanaka told Reuters.

Asked where the extra Saudi production was going, Tanaka said that demand was increasing in a number of countries including India, China and the United States.

"Saudi is exporting to many countries so it's very difficult to say where its going," he said.

Earlier this month, the Paris-based agency said that the kingdom's production in December was up 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) from a revised November estimate of 8.5 million bpd.

"Our wish is that OPEC is flexible and this is what we are seeing from al-Naimi," he added referring to the Saudi Arabian oil minister, who said earlier this month the country may boost production if it sees that demand is growing.

(Reporting by Amena Bakr; Editing by William Hardy)