Guest views are now limited to 12 pages. If you get an "Error" message, just sign in! If you need to create an account, click here.

Jump to content
  • CRYPTO REWARDS!

    Full endorsement on this opportunity - but it's limited, so get in while you can!

Oil rises 1% on settlement amid fears of supply shortages


Recommended Posts

Oil Prices Rise After API Reports Surprise Crude Draw

By Julianne Geiger - Feb 12, 2019, 3:40 PM CST oil storage

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a small crude oil inventory draw of 998,000 barrels for the week ending February 8, close to analyst expectations that predicted a build in crude oil inventories to the tune of 2.300 million barrels.

Last week, the API reported a surprise crude build of 2.514 millionbarrels. A day later, the EIA confirmed the inventory build, but a smaller one at 1.3 million barrels. 

Oil prices were trading up on the day prior to the data released on Tuesday as OPEC’s heavyweight Saudi Arabia promised to cut even deeper both oil production and exports in the month of March. Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister, Khalid al-Falih, said that Saudi Arabia would taper oil production down to 9.8 million barrels per day in March, or roughly 500,000 below its production quota under the OPEC+ deal reached last month.

 

At 2:51pm EST on Tuesday, WTI was trading $0.69 up on the day (+1.32%) per barrel at $53.10—a rise of on the day but a decrease week on week. Brent crude was trading up $0.95 (+1.54%) at $62.46—up slightly week on week.    

The API this week reported a build in gasoline inventories for week ending February 8 in the amount of 746,000 barrels. Analysts were close in their predictions, estimating a build of 508,000 barrels for the week.

US crude oil production as estimated by the Energy Information Administration showed that production for the week ending February 1—the latest information available—averaged 11.9 million barrels per day for the fourth week in a row.

Distillate inventories decreased this week by 2.481 million barrels, compared to a smaller expected draw of 1.090 million barrels.

Crude oil inventories at the Cushing, Oklahoma facility fell by 502,000 barrels for the week.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration report on crude oil inventories is due to be released on Wednesday at 10:30a.m. EST.

By 4:35pm EST, WTI was trading up at $53.05 and Brent was trading up at $62.40.

 

https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Oil-Prices-Rise-After-API-Reports-Surprise-Crude-Draw9080.html

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Biggest Threat To Oil Market Stability

By Nick Cunningham - Feb 11, 2019, 6:00 PM CST

The oil market should be mostly balanced this year, although “policy risk” will be a much larger driver for oil prices than the underlying fundamentals, according to a new report from Standard Chartered.

 

Brent crude started the year off repairing the damage from the epic meltdown in the fourth quarter, but over the last few weeks oil prices have rebounded. Standard Chartered sees Brent rising much farther, averaging as high as $74 per barrel this year, before averaging as high as $83 per barrel in 2020.

However, this forecast hinges on a variety of key policy decisions. First, OPEC+ must keep its production cuts in place, and indeed the group needs to cap output at January levels. If they can manage that, then global crude inventories would only rise by a minor 0.1 million barrels per day (mb/d), according to Standard Chartered.

That would set the stage for a better situation for OPEC+ next year. “With non-OPEC growth expected to be limited outside North America, and U.S. oil supply expected to slow markedly, we think OPEC will be able to raise output by 0.5 million barrels per day (mb/d) in 2020 without unbalancing the market,” Emily Ashford and Paul Horsnell wrote in a Standard Chartered report

Although the supply/demand fundamentals appear to be “benign” in the face of OPEC+ market management, additional “policy risk” could have an outsized impact on prices.

Standard Chartered singled out the U.S. government as a major source of volatility. “If the balances were the sole driver of OPEC output policy, the stage would have been set for a relatively quiet year,” the investment bank wrote. “However, there is a disruptive factor in the market which is likely to complicate policy choices; U.S. policy has become harder to predict.” Related: South Africa Oil Discovery Could Be A Game-Changer

After a quiet first year from President Trump, 2018 was markedly different. “13 market-moving tweets on oil expressing a strong desire for lower prices, significant developments in policy towards Iran and Venezuela, and a sense that domestic energy policy is in a period of substantial flux,” Standard Chartered wrote. “We think that the oil market, oil producers and oil analysts have yet to adapt fully to the uncertainty and policy risks injected into the oil market by the Trump presidency.”

There is very little clarity on how much oil will be lost in Venezuela and Iran, for instance, and the White House has a great deal of influence over these issues. As of now, the U.S. is squeezing Venezuela as hard as it can, effectively barring both the import of Venezuelan oil and the export of U.S. diluents to the country. That puts much of Venezuela’s oil production at risk.

Reports of idling tankers off both the coast of Venezuela and in the U.S. Gulf Coast attest to the disruption that is already underway. To be sure, the New York Times reported that Russia is sending some fuel shipments to Venezuela to help PDVSA process its heavy crude, which could help prevent catastrophic losses. However, the declines are expected to continue. The question is by how much?

 

As for Iran, the U.S. has clearly expressed its desire to take a harder line. By all accounts, the government plans on issuing no new waivers for sanctions, with the stated goal of getting Iran’s oil exports to zero. At around 1 mb/d currently, achieving that goal would amount be a major loss of supply.

The problem is that Trump’s goal of regime change in Venezuela conflicts with its Iran policy. Simply put, it is going to be tough to shut in output in both countries without sending crude oil prices significantly higher. If anything is certain when it comes to Trump’s whims and desires, it is that he wants low gasoline prices. It’s not clear how he achieves that while simultaneously encircling and shutting down the oil industries in both Venezuela and Iran. Related: Washington Eyes Crackdown On OPEC

Beyond Venezuela and Iran, another source of great uncertainty is the global economy. The U.S.-China trade war may be on hold, but the deadline for a deal is only a few weeks away. A ratcheting up of tensions could kneecap the global economy – and it’s a decision that is entirely up to Trump.

It isn’t just Trump, however. Another layer of uncertainty will come from the implementation of regulations on marine fuels by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The sulfur concentration in marine fuels will have to drop from 3.5 percent to just 0.5 percent by January 2020, which could cause some upheaval in refined fuel markets. Indeed, the margins for gasoline and diesel have already diverged significantly.

This a rather long list of major policy decisions and endeavors that complicate any pricing forecast, and in fact, they question the very utility of trying to predict oil prices in this environment.

As Standard Chartered noted, if we simply extrapolate forward OPEC+ cuts we can come to the conclusion that inventories would be mostly balanced, resulting in “a quiet year” for oil.

However, even as OPEC+ commands enormous influence over crude prices, the oil market is at the mercy of a handful of policy decisions, many of which will be made by the U.S. government.

 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/The-Biggest-Threat-To-Oil-Market-Stability.html

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hedge Funds Unsure Where Oil Prices Are Going

Feb 12, 2019, 5:00 PM CST

storage tanks

Following an optimistic start to the year and the best January everfor oil prices, hedge funds and other money managers began the month of February more cautiously as fears about global economic growth outweighed (again) OPEC’s cuts and U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Iran.

In the latest reporting week to February 5, portfolio managers added more long positions on Brent Crude, but short positions—bets that prices will fall—also rose for the first time this year.

Although the speculative positioning in the week resulted in a slight rise in the combined net long position—the difference between bullish and bearish bets—the increase in short positions suggests that hedge funds are now much more undecided where oil prices will be heading next.

According to data from ICE Futures Europe compiled by Reuters market analyst John Kemp, money managers boosted their net long position in Brent Crude in the week to February 5 by just 1 million barrels. Long positions—bets that prices would rise—increased by 15 million barrels. However, short positions rose nearly as much as longs, with 13 million barrels in shorts added last week.

The rise of the shorts, for the first time this year, could suggest that hedge funds have diverging views about where Brent prices are going next and that bearish concerns such as economic slowdown or no-deal U.S.-China trade talks have prevailed over bullish cues such as OPEC’s cuts, sanctions on Venezuela, and slowing growth in U.S. crude oil production.  

Due to the U.S. government shutdown, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) won’t have caught up with up-to-date WTI Crude positioning data until next month. Related: Oil Jumps As Saudis Plan Further Production Cuts

Judging from the commitments of traders in Brent in the week to February 5, hedge funds were almost equally divided between adding longs and shorts, with longs leading slightly. This compares with a massive retreat in shorts seen in January.

 

 

At the end of January, hedge funds and other money managers started to shake off the gloomy expectations of a global recession and waning oil demand growth that had seized market participants for most of the fourth quarter last year.

Yet, the primary driver for the increase in the net long position was the closing of the many shorts from late 2018, rather than a renewed bullishness that oil prices will be rallying.

Between early December and late January, hedge funds raised their net long position by a total of 96 million barrels and increased the net long in seven out of eight weeks. However, the rise in the net long position since early December was primarily the result of closing the shorts, rather than a clear sign that bulls are back.

Between December 11 and January 29, short positions declined by more than 60 percent from 122 million barrels to 48 million barrels, but longs increased by only 27 million barrels, as fund managers were less bearish but surely not enthusiastically bullish on the price of oil. Related: Is A Natural Gas Cartel Forming?

In the week January 29 to February 5, however, shorts increasedby 28 percent—the most since late October and the first rise after four weeks of bears retreating—while the number of long positions rose by 5.2 percent.

While money managers as a whole were undecided where Brent Crude was heading, they boosted bullish bets on gasoil and diesel futures during the latest reporting week, after the U.S. sanctions on Venezuela started to limit the supply of medium and heavy crudes such as Venezuela’s, which are well suited for processing into gasoil, Reuters’ Kemp says.

Going forward, hedge funds will be looking for direction from a range of bullish and bearish factors. No-deal U.S.-China trade talks and economic growth concerns would be attracting the bears, while OPEC’s cuts, U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, and possible slowdown in U.S. crude production would make more room for the bulls to run. 

 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Hedge-Funds-Unsure-Where-Oil-Prices-Are-Going.html

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Texas Oil Production Breaks New Record

Feb 12, 2019, 3:00 PM CST

texas oil drilling

The state of Texas now has even more bragging rights in the U.S. Oil Patch, and even globally According to a new report from the Texas Independent Producers Royalty Owners Association, the Lone Star state’s oil production hit a record level not seen since 1973, the same year of the Arab oil embargo that roiled global oil markets.

Texas oil wells produced more than 1.54 billion barrels of crude in 2018, topping the previous record of 1.28 billion barrels set in 1973, TIPRO reported in its annual "State of Energy Report.” Natural gas production also grew, reaching 8.8 trillion cubic feet (tcf) last year. In 2017, Texas also came close to beating the 1973 oil output record, pumping 1.26 billion barrels of oil.

To put Texas oil production in perspective, if it were a country, it would be the world's third oil producer sometime this year, behind only Russia and Saudi Arabia, HSBC said in a report. The main engine of Texas oil output is the Permian basin that spans West Texas and southeastern New Mexico and is one of the most prolific oil and gas producing regions in the U.S. The Permian Basin is approximately 250 miles wide and 300 miles long, across West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. It encompasses several sub-basins, including the Delaware Basin and the Midland Basin.

U.S. production revolutionizes global oil markets

Record-breaking U.S. oil production is expected to continue for decades, driven largely by the Permian Basin, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its Annual Energy Outlooktwo weeks ago. In the outlook's reference case, the EIA forecasts U.S. oil output, which averaged 10.93 million b/d in 2018, to climb to nearly 15 million b/d by 2027 before flattening out and falling below 12 million b/d by 2050. Shale production in the Lower 48 states will account for nearly 70 percent of domestic production over the next three decades, according to the report. The majority of the growth will take place in the Permian, according to Meg Coleman, leader of EIA's exploration and production team. Related: Which Oil Giant Generates The Most Cash?

 

The EIA also projected that the U.S. will become a net energy exporter in 2020 and remain so through at least 2050, due largely to a rapid growth of domestic crude, gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs) output and a slowdown in US consumption growth.

U.S. oil production has changed global oil markets over the last several years, catching both global oil players and Russia and a Saudi-led OPEC off-guard. U.S. production was largely responsible for an oil glut in late 2014 that saw Saudi Arabia change course and instead of cutting back production to support prices that were its standard policy for decades, it actually ramped up production to not only drive U.S. shale producers out of business but to guard its market share. However, the plan backfired, almost driving the kingdom into a financial tailspin, and saw oil prices plunge from around $100 per barrel in mid-2014 to just under $30 per barrel in Jan. 2016. In essence, it was U.S oil output that forced Saudi Arabia to reach out to Russia and other non-OPEC players and form the so-called OPEC+ group of producers to try to take back control of global oil markets.

Going forward, U.S. oil production will still cause havoc for OPEC+ as the group makes good on its recent deal to trim oil output. Other factors, including the loss of both Iranian and Venezuelan barrels, the outcome of U.S.-China trade talks, and economic growth also come into play. Finally, what Saudi Arabia could for decades, play the part of global oil markets swing producer, it now has to do with Russian help and at the end of the day, U.S. production, albeit driven by Texas production, is the reason why.

 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Texas-Oil-Production-Breaks-New-Record.html

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
12994.jpg
 
  

 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

US crude oil inventories fell unexpectedly last week, gasoline inventories rose and distillate stocks fell, the US Petroleum Institute said. 
Crude stocks fell 998,000 barrels in the week ending Feb. 8 to 447.2 million barrels, compared with analysts' forecasts for a 2.7 million barrel increase. 
The API said crude stocks at the Kashkent delivery center in Oklahoma fell by 502,000 barrels. 
Petroleum Institute data showed that refinery consumption fell by 832,000 bpd. 
Gasoline inventories increased by 746,000 barrels, compared to analysts' forecasts in a Reuters poll of 826,000 barrels.
Data from the Institute showed that distillate stocks, including diesel and heating oil, fell by 2.5 million barrels, compared to expectations of a 1.1 million barrel decline. 
US crude imports last week fell 1.1 million barrels per day to 6.6 million bpd.


Views 36   Date Added 02/13/2019

 
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
13004.jpg
 
  

 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

 Brent crude prices rose on Wednesday after Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, said it would cut crude exports and cut production further, while US futures increased as a drop in domestic oil inventories.

By 0950 GMT, Brent crude futures were up 88 cents at $ 63.30 a barrel, while US crude futures rose 66 cents to $ 53.76 a barrel.

"The good sentiment is back, but those who are bullish on the dollar have not yet fully overcome the crisis," said Stephen Brinock of BP Oil Associates.

"It is well known that the global economy is losing momentum under various risks such as US-China trade and geopolitical uncertainties."

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said on Tuesday it had cut production by about 800 thousand barrels per day to 30.81 million barrels per day.

Most of the reduction is due to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Faleh told the Financial Times on Tuesday that production would fall below 10 million bpd in March, less than half a million barrels per day below the agreed target of the kingdom under the global supply cut.


Views 23   Date Added 02/13/2019

 
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
Thursday, February 14
 
 
Search Bigger
 
 

BAGHDAD Reuters) -
Oil prices rose nearly 1 percent on Thursday as Brent crude futures peaked at their 2019 highs, buoyed by hopes of ending the US-China trade dispute. 

By 1200 GMT, Brent crude was $ 64.55 a barrel, up 94 cents, or 1.45 percent. 

It rose US crude West Texas Intermediate 56 cents , or 1.2 percent , compared with the latest settlement to $ 54.45 a barrel.

 

 


Optimism has been boosted by the possibility of a trade deal between the United States and China when US President Donald Trump said the talks were going "very well". 

The markets also supported encouraging data for Chinese trade, including crude oil.

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • yota691 changed the title to Oil prices rise to the highest level in 2019

Oil prices rise to the highest level in 2019

12:42 - 15/02/2019

 
image
 
 


Brent crude rose to a record high of 2019 above $ 65 a barrel on Friday, supported by OPEC-led production cuts and a partial closure of Saudi Arabia's largest offshore oil field. 
Brent rose to $ 65.10, the first time it was above $ 65 this year, before retreating to $ 64.77 by 0623 GMT, up about 0.3 percent from the previous settlement. 
The benchmark is close to a three-month high and is heading for a weekly gain of 4.5 percent this week. 
US WTI crude futures were $ 54.56 a barrel, up 15 cents, or 0.3 percent, from the previous settlement.
Traders said the price was supported by a partial closure of Saudi Arabia's largest offshore oilfield, the Safaniya, which has a production capacity of over 1 million bpd. 
The source said the closure took place earlier this week. It was not clear when the field would return to full capacity

  • Upvote 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oil economy reaches the highest price in 2019
1-1216868.jpg

 Twilight News    

 3 hours ago



 

World crude oil prices rose Brent to a record high of 2019, above $ 65 a barrel on Friday, supported by OPEC-led production cuts. 
Brent rose to $ 65.10, the first time it was above $ 65 this year, before retreating to $ 64.77 by 06:23 GMT, up about 0.3 percent from the previous settlement. 
The benchmark is nearing its highest level in three months and is heading for a weekly gain of 4.5 percent this week. 
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were $ 54.56 a barrel, up 15 cents, or 0.3 percent, from the previous settlement. 
The contracts had reached the highest level in 2019 at 64.81 dollars earlier.






http://www.shafaaq.com/ar/Ar_NewsReader/f99fda8f-451b-4647-9f96-9a4428528c7a

 
 
  • Thanks 2
  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • yota691 changed the title to OPEC cuts oil prices to the highest level since the beginning of the year

OPEC cuts oil prices to the highest level since the beginning of the year

Friday, 1440/6/10 H corresponding to 2019/02/15 SPA
zoomout.png
 


LONDON, Feb. 15 ( 
Xinhua) - The global mix of Khak Brent on Thursday recorded its highest level since the beginning of 2019, exceeding $ 65 a barrel, supported by OPEC-led production cuts. 
Brent rose to $ 65.10, the first time it was above $ 65 this year, before retreating to $ 64.77, up 0.3% from the previous settlement. 
US WTI crude futures were $ 54.56 a barrel, up 15 cents, or 0.3 percent, from the previous settlement. 
// // ended 
13:43 ITM 
0041

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
13036.jpg
 
  

 energy


Economy News _ Baghdad

 Iraq has cut the production of the giant Majnoon field to 104,000 barrels per day (bpd) this month from 220,000 bpd in January, an official source at the Iraqi Oil Ministry told Reuters. 
The source said the process of cutting production in the field was a commitment from Iraq to the agreement of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). 
Iraq's supply is below its maximum production capacity of around 5 million bpd, in line with an agreement between OPEC and other exporters, including Russia, to cut global supply to support prices.


Views 76   Date Added 02/17/2019

 
  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This week, political crises and OPEC suppor t oil prices despite fears

This week, political crises and OPEC support oil prices despite fears
 
 

17 February 2019 04:01 PM
From: Sally Ismail

Mubasher: An important week for the oil market carried many developments on both sides of supply and demand, with a wave of daily gains in crude prices lasted for 5 consecutive sessions.

Last week, one of the biggest downward factors in oil - the trade war between the world's two largest economies - showed some positive signs.

While concern over the decline in the economic momentum continues its upward trend, as well as the continuing shortage of supplies in Venezuela.

At the same time, OPEC is strengthening its efforts to rebalance the crude market by cutting output while US production continues to record highs.

Black gold gained  over the last week's sessions by 6.7% for Brent crude and 5.4% for US Nymex .

In view of the supporting factors for oil, it comes in the forefront of optimism about reaching a trade deal between the United States and China in the trade dispute, the center pledged Donald Trump to remove all tariffs if achieving this.

Meanwhile, press reports indicate that Trump is planning to extend the 60-day trade truce to give the negotiations a longer period to resolve differences between the two sides.

The black gold market has been hit hard recently by trade disputes that have reduced demand for crude and threaten global economic growth, which means less economic activity that requires oil.

It is noteworthy that China 's imports of oil exceeds 10 million barrels per day for the third consecutive month during last January, in a positive signal on the strength of the demand so far.

In the same context, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, "OPEC", which denies the accusations about the manipulation and price fixing of oil, are on the way to reduce oil supplies in an effort to reduce fears of supply obscurity.

OPEC and non-OPEC crude producers agreed late last year to cut oil production levels  by 1.2 million bpd to restore market balance in the first six months of this year.

According to OPEC's monthly report, the 14 member states cut oil production by 797,000 bpd in January, led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The OECD has also cut estimates of global demand for crude over the past two years due to concerns about slowing economic momentum .

In the view of the head of the Energy Agency, Fatih Birul that there are negative and positive within the oil market; the first relates to the slowdown of global economic growth, especially in China and the resulting impact on demand, while the other concerns the geopolitical concerns in Venezuela and the Middle East and Iran.

The European Commission has cut short-term economic growth estimates for the euro zone, following a similar move by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in relation to the growth of the global economy.

In the US oil production , the US Energy Information Administration's weekly report showed that it continued to record a record fifth week in a row as net crude imports fell to their lowest level ever.

While US oil production averaged 11.900 million barrels per day on a weekly basis, oil inventoriesreached their highest level since November 2017 and the number of US crude oil platformsincreased .

The US administration expects oil production in the United States to reach 12.41 and 13.2 million barrels per day during the current and next year, up 2.8% and 2.6% from previous estimates.

With regard to the situation in Venezuela , the International Energy Agency (IEA) highlights in its latest monthly report the oil crisis in Venezuela as it threatens to create chaos in the world market as a result of the lack of quality that the country produces from crude oil.

US sanctions against Iran and Venezuela affect oil production, which directly overshadows the supply of heavy sour crude.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro expressed his hope for OPEC support against US sanctions

On the side of price expectations , there is a positive outlook for the second quarter of this year as Brent is expected to hit $ 67.50 per barrel.

Goldman Sachs forecasts in a research note that strong demand, along with curbing supply from OPEC and its allies, are the main proponents of pushing prices up.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17-02-2019 10:10 AM

image.php?token=c20285cac965d32be950a772cc987b24&size=

 


 

 

 

Baghdad / News

Iraq has cut the production of the giant Majnoon field to 104,000 bpd this month from 220,000 bpd in January, an official source at the oil ministry said .

The source said in a statement quoted by 'Reuters' that 'the process of reducing production in the field came a commitment from Iraq to the agreement of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC )'.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oil Prices Near Three-Month High As Market Tightens

- Feb 18, 2019, 9:30 AM CSTJoin Our Community

oil industry

Oil prices rose early on Monday, extending last week’s gains amid rekindled hopes that the U.S. and China could reach a trade deal and growing signs of a tightening market, driven by OPEC’s production cuts and U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela.

At 07:38 a.m. EST on Monday, WTI Crude was trading up 0.80 percent at $56.43, while Brent Crude eased off earlier gains to trade down 0.02 percent at $66.24.

Still, Brent Crude is currently on track for its best performance in a first quarter of a year since 2011. So far into 2019, oil prices have gained around 25 percent.

On Friday afternoon, oil prices reached their highest in three months and the highest so far this year, with Brent Crude exceeding $65 a barrel for the first time since November 2018. Bigger-than-expected cuts from OPEC and its de facto leader and largest producer Saudi Arabia helped push prices up. This bullish signal combined with renewed optimism coming from both the United States and China that they had made some progress in last week’s trade talks.

Representatives of the world’s two largest economies will be meeting in Washington this week for another round of trade talks and the markets, including the oil market, are currently banking that the worst of a trade war could be averted and some sort of deal could be reached.

 

“[W]e are looking at the tightest H1 crude balance in many years and, as such, a certain degree of price support does simply make sense for the time being,” Reuters quoted consultancy JBC Energy as saying in a note on Monday.

Related: 2 Reasons Why Big Oil Isn’t Rushing Into Renewables

Although there are a lot of unpredictable factors and a lot of uncertainties, the latest available data suggests that the oil market is tightening, according to PVM Oil Associates analyst Tamas Varga.

“It is not recommended to swim against the current and presently the ‘oil’ river is flowing north,” Varga told Reuters.

Last week, hedge funds and other money managers boosted their bets on rising Brent Crude prices by 10 percent, with portfolio managers’ sentiment at its most bullish since the end of October 2018. 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Oil-Prices-Near-Three-Month-High-As-Market-Tighten.html

  • Thanks 3
  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
13068.jpg
 
  

 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, plans to cut light crude supplies to Asian buyers for April, two sources said on Tuesday. 
In contrast to the previous two months, exporters are expected to stop supplying additional supplies of Arab light crude over contracted volumes. 
The move improved the demand for high sulfur light materials, such as Merban and Das from Abu Dhabi, in the Asian spot market, reducing the discount on the prices of these materials, the sources said. 
Saudi Aramco has yet to be reached for comment.


Views 8   Date Added 19/02/2019

 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

For the first time .. Russia goes beyond Saudi Arabia in oil production

For the first time .. Russia goes beyond Saudi Arabia in oil production
 



 Twilight News    
 2 hours ago

(Reuters) - In December 2018, Russia ranked second in terms of oil production by 10.738 million bpd, overtaking Saudi Arabia, while the United States was in the lead, joint oil data Jodi reported on Monday.

The United States produced an average of 11.658 million barrels of oil a day in December, remaining the largest oil producer, according to the Judy report. Third place went to Saudi Arabia with a production volume of 10.643 million barrels per day.

Production in Russia, according to JUDI figures, rose 0.08 per cent from November, while in the United States it fell by 0.3 per cent and in Saudi Arabia by 4.06 per cent.

Saudi oil exports in December fell 6.65 per cent on a monthly basis to 7.687 million bpd and the United States by 0.17 per cent to 2.407 million bpd.

Russian data were not reported, but at the same time data showed that Russia exported in November, 5.615 million barrels per day, and in October - 5.268 million barrels.

Refining in US refineries in December rose 2.51 per cent from the previous month to 17.5 million barrels per day, while oil refining in Saudi Arabia fell 5.36 per cent from November to 2.684 million bpd.

Refining in Russia's refineries rose 1.35 percent from a month earlier to 6.002 million bpd.

Keywords: 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
Tuesday 19 February
 
 
Search Bigger
 
 

BAGHDAD ( Reuters) -
Oil remained close to a record high of around $ 67 a barrel on Tuesday, supported by OPEC-led supply cuts, although the market has been hit by concerns about slowing world economic growth, which could dampen demand. 

Output cuts, led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), helped crude prices rise more than 20 percent since the start of the year. 

US sanctions on Iran and Venezuela have also caused organic shortages in the market.

 

 


By 12:04 GMT, London Brent crude was down 16 cents, or 0.24 percent, at $ 66.34 a barrel, near a high of $ 66.83 on Monday. 

US WTI crude futures rose 50 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $ 56.09 a barrel.

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • yota691 changed the title to Oil falls from the highest level in 2019 as a result of economic concerns
 
940.jpg
Oil
  

 energy


Economy News Baghdad:

Oil fell from a peak of 2019 to around $ 67 a barrel on Tuesday, as fears over the progress of US-China trade talks and the global economic slowdown have dampened the fall in supplies.

Output cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have helped crude prices rise more than 20 percent since the beginning of this year. Demand concerns remain the main driver of lower prices.

Brent crude fell 64 cents to $ 65.86 a barrel by 1435 GMT, after peaking at a high of $ 201.83 at $ 66.83 a barrel on Monday. US crude fell 26 cents to $ 55.33 a barrel.

On Tuesday, more talks between the United States and China will be held to resolve their trade dispute. Traders say they are wary of creating large new positions before reaching a conclusion.

In another economic warning, HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, warned it could delay some of its investments this year with earnings below the expected in 2018 due to slower growth in China and Britain.

OPEC cut its forecast for world oil demand growth in 2019 to 1.24 million bpd and some analysts believe the outlook could fall further.


Views 120   Date Added 19/02/2019

 
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
13132.jpg
 
  

 Arab and international


Economy News _ Baghdad

Oil prices surged near their 2011 highs on Thursday, supported by OPEC-led supply cuts and US sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, but the global economic slowdown has kept it from rising further.

At 0742 GMT, US WTI crude futures were at $ 57.39 a barrel, up 23 cents, or 0.4 percent, at the latest settlement, close to the peak of 2019 at $ 57.55 recorded the day before.

Brent crude was $ 67.20 a barrel, up 12 cents, or 0.2 percent, on the latest closing, not far from its peak of $ 67.38 a barrel the previous day.

Analysts said the global economic slowdown was preventing prices from exceeding peak levels this week.

"The slowdown in economic growth will inevitably lead to fuel shortages, eroding the strong gains in oil prices," said Benjamin Lo, analyst at Philip Futures in Singapore.


Views 45   Date Added 02/21/2019

 
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oil To Rise As U.S., China Outline Trade Deal

By Nick Cunningham - Feb 21, 2019, 6:00 PM CST

Trump Xi

Oil prices are likely to jump if Trump and Xi can hash out a deal.

The U.S. and China have started to sketch out the framework of a comprehensive trade deal, including on some of the thorniest issues that have long prevented an agreement, according to a new report from Reuters.

The progress comes at the eleventh hour of the trade negotiations. In late 2018, President Trump punted on steeper import tariffs on Chinese goods, declaring a ceasefire and setting a March 1 deadline for a trade deal. If both sides couldn’t reach an agreement, Trump vowed to move forward with tariff hikes from 10 to 25 percent on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.

The odds were stacked against the talks. The U.S. demands didn’t just include buying some more American goods, but sweeping structural changes to the way it says China unfairly props up its own businesses. In the first few weeks of the year, there seemed to be little progress, raising the specter of a huge escalation in the trade war at a time when the global economic expansion is running on fumes.

Now, suddenly, there seems to be major progress. Sources told Reuters that “the broad outline of what could make up a deal is beginning to emerge from the talks,” even though serious disagreement remains. The outline includes memorandums of understanding on six overarching issues, Reuters says, including forced technology transfer and cyber theft, intellectual property rights, services, currency, agriculture and non-tariff barriers to trade. Related: Cracks Begin To Form In Saudi-Russian Alliance

That is, uh, a rather ambitious list of issues to tackle. It is entirely possible that the two sides cannot reach an agreement at all. In fact, much of the progress so far has been on trade imbalances. For instance, China has offered to buy an additional $30 billion worth of American agricultural products, such as soybeans, corn and wheat. This is easy stuff compared to some of the so-called “structural” issues on the agenda, such as intellectual property rights, barriers to the Chinese market for American companies, state support for Chinese companies and currency controls. Some skeptics wonder if the gulf between the two sides can ever be bridged.

However, having come this far, another possibility is that the talks are extended and the tariff threat is taken off of the table, something that President Trump suggested he would be open to. His flexibility suggests negotiators are making significant progress. The flip side is that China may be unwilling to make deep concessions, but could be offering just enough to drag out the talks and put off new tariffs. Time will tell.

 

 

A breakthrough on trade negotiations, or at least the suspension of new tariffs, could conceivably remove one of the most bearish factors threatening oil prices this year. The U.S.-China trade war would inflict damage on both sides, and because China’s economy is already decelerating, new tariffs could be painful. And, as the world’s growth engine, a sputtering Chinese economy would have global implications.

Europe is already feeling the pain. German manufacturing activity fell to its lowest level since 2012 in February. “In terms of the factors behind the slowdown in manufacturing order books, many of the usual suspects — the uncertainty relating to US-China trade tensions and weakness in the autos industry — were highlighted, although there were also reports of growing competitive pressures within Europe” Phil Smith, an economist at IHS Markit, told the FTRelated: The Ultimate Tool To Prop Up Oil Prices

There is also another major land mine lurking just over the horizon – the Trump administration is reviewing possible tariffs on imported autos, something that would almost certainly rattle global manufacturing. The White House just received a report from the Commerce Department that reviewed the national security implications of auto manufacturing, the basis for which could be used by Trump to slap tariffs on car imports. VW’s CEO said that the biggest threat to its profit this year would be U.S. tariffs. Still, this threat remains speculative.

The U.S., too, is arguably not as strong as it outwardly seems. Growth has been inflated because of massive corporate tax cuts phased in last year, the effects of which should wear off. Also, the U.S. is sitting on at least a few sub-prime bubbles – one for autosand one for corporate debt. The Federal Reserve also hiked interest rates multiple times last year, tightening the overall credit environment. In the face of global economic headwinds, the Fed backed off earlier this year on its hawkish plans to hike rates even more.

And the U.S. can only weather a global slowdown for so long. The Trump administration cannot do much about a slowdown elsewhere, but the trade fight is the one arena where it exercises a lot of control. In a few days, we will find out what the president plans to do.

 

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Oil-To-Rise-As-US-China-Outline-Trade-Deal.html

  • Thanks 1
  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • yota691 changed the title to US oil production hits 12 million bpd for the first time

US oil production hits 12 million bpd for the first time

US oil production hits 12 million bpd for the first time

21 February 2019 07:38 PM
Mubasher: US oil production rose last week to 12 million barrels per day for the first time ever.

US oil production rose by 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the week ending Feb. 15 to 12 million bpd, according to the US Energy Information Administration's weekly report released Thursday.

US production of black gold is at its all-time high in terms of weekly levels after stabilizing for five consecutive weeks .

With regard to net US oil imports, which is the difference between imports and exports of crude, it increased by 69 thousand barrels per day last week to reach 3.915 million barrels per day, up from a record low last week.

According to the report, US imports of oil rose 1.312 million barrels per day last week to reach 7.522 million barrels per day.

US crude exports also increased by 1.243 million barrels per day, rising to 3.607 million bpd last week.

On US inventories , oil inventories rose by 3.7 million barrels in the past week to be the fifth straight gain, against expectations of a 2.9 million barrel increase in the uptrend.

By 4:02 pm GMT, the price of Brent crude for April delivery settled at $ 67.08 a barrel.

While US crude futures for April delivery fell more than 0.2% to $ 57.02 a barrel.

 
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

US oil inventories rise for the fifth week in a row

US oil inventories rise for the fifth week in a row

 21 February 2019 07:20 PM
Direct : US oil inventories rose for the fifth week in a row, while gasoline stocks fell during the same period.

US oil inventories rose 3.7 million barrels in the week ending February 15 to 454.5 million barrels, according to data released by the US Energy Information Administration on Thursday.

Analysts had expected US oil inventories to rise 2.9 million barrels last week.

While US gasoline inventories fell by 1.5 million barrels last week.

By 4:03 pm GMT, the price of NYMEX crude futures for April delivery fell 0.5% to $ 56.88 a barrel.

Brent crude for April delivery fell 0.2% to $ 66.93 a barrel.

 
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • yota691 changed the title to Oil rises 1% on settlement amid fears of supply shortages
  • TexasGranny locked this topic
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.