Oil Market News
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices steadied on Friday and were on track for strong weekly gains as support from a surprise draw in U.S. inventories and possible action from OPEC and its allies to extend output cuts outweighed broader economic concerns. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil steadied above $61 a barrel on Thursday as concern over the demand outlook offset a surprise drop in U.S. crude inventories and the prospect of further action by OPEC and its allies to support the market. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices slipped toward $59 a barrel on Wednesday on data showing a bigger-than-expected rise in U.S. crude stocks, while the prospect of deeper output cuts by OPEC and its allies offered support.
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LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Tuesday after China signaled progress in trade talks with the United States, but gains were capped by bearish forecasts of a buildup in U.S. crude stockpiles.
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LONDON (Reuters) – Oil fell on Monday as concerns about economic growth combined with signs of ample global supplies pressured prices, outweighing bullish signals from Europe, where fears of an economically damaging no-deal Brexit have eased. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices rose slightly on Friday as concern over an economic slowdown in China, the world’s biggest oil consumer, was countered by bullish signals from both the Chinese and U.S. refining sectors. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell on Thursday as industry data showed a larger-than-expected build-up in U.S. inventories but losses were limited after the United Kingdom and the European Union announced they had reached a deal on Brexit. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil edged further below $59 a barrel on Wednesday, pressured by concerns about weaker demand for fuel due to slower economic growth and forecasts of a further rise in U.S. crude inventories. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell further on Tuesday, after heavy losses in the previous session following two days of weak Chinese data and as investors continued to fret over prospects for a U.S.-China trade deal despite signs of a truce last week. more…
(Bloomberg) — Oil slid after surging the most in almost a month on Friday amid doubts that recent progress in the U.S.-China trade talks will compensate for a worsening global demand outlook. more…
Oil prices jumped 2 percent following reports of an explosion on board an Iranian oil tanker. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices dipped on Thursday as the U.S.-China trade war continued to cloud prospects for the global economy and fuel demand despite a resumption in talks seeking a resolution to the 15-month conflict. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil rose on Wednesday following media reports that China was open to agreeing a partial trade deal with the United States, while unrest in OPEC members Iraq and Ecuador also supported prices. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell on Tuesday as Washington’s blacklisting of more Chinese companies dampened hopes for a trade deal between the two countries, though unrest in Iraq and Ecuador lent some support to crude prices. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices were up on Monday, buoyed by hopes of progress in U.S.-China trade talks and supported by challenges to supply facing major exporters. more…
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Friday but remained on track for a second consecutive weekly loss after sliding on fears that slower global economic growth would hurt energy demand. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil slipped further below $58 a barrel on Thursday, pressured by concerns about global economic growth, oil demand and signs of excess supply despite OPEC-led cuts. more…
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil rebounded from several days of falling prices after industry data showed a surprise drop in U.S. crude inventories and offset weak economic readings in the United States that have depressed global stock markets. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices rebounded on Tuesday on reports that output from the world’s largest oil producers fell during the third quarter, although a resumption in Saudi supply and demand concerns kept a lid on gains. more…
Oil prices fell more than one percent Monday after Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader said war with Iran would destroy the world economy and hinted instead at a non-military solution. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell on Friday and were heading for a weekly loss on a faster than expected recovery in Saudi output while slowing Chinese economic growth dampens the demand outlook. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil steadied on Thursday amid optimism that the United States and China could resolve their trade dispute, though prices came under pressure from Saudi Arabia’s moves to restore output quickly after attacks on its oil installations. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices fell for a second day on Wednesday on worries that fuel demand could fall after U.S. President Donald Trump doused recent optimism over China-U.S. trade talks at a time of rising U.S. crude oil stockpiles. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices retreated on Wednesday, extending the previous day’s decline after Saudi Arabia said it would quickly restore full production following last weekend’s attacks on its facilities. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices declined on Tuesday but the market was on tenterhooks over the threat of retaliation for attacks on Saudi Arabian crude oil facilities that halved the kingdom’s output and prompted a price spike not seen in decades. more…
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July 7, 2016.
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(Bloomberg) — Oil fell after the first monthly gain since June as Saudi Arabia stepped up production, lifting OPEC’s output beyond its collective quota for a ninth month.
Futures decreased as much as 1.4 percent in New York. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 30.6 million barrels a day in February, according to a Bloomberg survey. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Brent crude oil reversed early losses to trade back above $59 a barrel on Tuesday as Libya’s largest oilfield stopped production, and as traders awaited U.S. oil inventory data to see whether it would show another large increase.
The Sarir oilfield in Libya shut because of a power cut, in a further blow to exports from the OPEC member. more…
LONDON (Reuters) – Brent crude oil rose toward $61 a barrel on Friday as expectations of falling U.S. rig count numbers outweighed concerns about oversupply.
The number of rigs drilling for oil in the United States fell to its lowest since August 2011 last week. This week’s numbers, produced by oil services firm Baker Hughes Inc, are due around 1800 GMT (01:00 p.m. EST) on Friday. more…
(Reuters) – Oil rose to $62 a barrel on Tuesday, close to its 2015 high, supported by threats to Middle East supplies and expectations lower prices may prompt a slowdown in U.S. output.
Egypt on Monday bombed Islamic State targets in Libya, where violence has reined in most oil output, and Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government threatened to withhold oil exports if Baghdad failed to send its share of the budget. more…
Brent crude rose above $60 a barrel for the first time this year after a slew of investment cutback announcements from leading oil companies raised expectations of a decline in supplies. more…
London (AFP) – Global oil prices rebounded Thursday on the weaker dollar, after tumbling the previous day on concerns about surging stockpiles in top consumer the United States, analysts said.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for March delivery rallied $1.84 to $50.68 a barrel compared with Wednesday’s close. more…
Crude-oil futures swung between gains and losses on Wednesday, as investors remain uncertain about oil-supply levels and scrutinize data for cues.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in March CLH5, -0.94% traded at $49.63 a barrel in recent trade, down 0.8%, or 39 cents, in the Globex electronic session.
Brent crude for March delivery LCOH5, -1.65% on London’s ICE Futures exchange fell 60 cents, or 1%, to $55.67 a barrel. more…
(Reuters) – Crude oil prices fell for the first time in four sessions on Tuesday after the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that ample supplies will raise global inventories before investment cuts begin to significantly dent production.
Oil stockpiles in member countries of the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) may approach a record 2.83 billion barrels by mid-2015, said the IEA, advisor on energy policy to a group of Western nations. more…
(Bloomberg) — Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest crude exporter, cut pricing for March oil sales to Asia, a sign that the desert kingdom is continuing to fight for market share.
State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. lowered its official selling price for Arab Light crude by 90 cents to $2.30 a barrel less than Middle East benchmarks, the company said in an e-mailed statement Thursday. That’s the lowest in at least the 14 years since Bloomberg began gathering data. more…
The price of oil continued its rally Tuesday, with producers announcing spending cuts which added to a slew of positive factors helping to drive the commodity higher.
U.S. crude prices climbed about $1.5 a barrel on Tuesday morning and was trading above $51 a barrel by 10:30 a.m GMT. Brent crude for March delivery opened at $55 a barrel and had risen to $56.53 a barrel by the same time. Both have seen gains of around 3 percent in morning trade and have climbed around 16 percent since Friday. more…
(Bloomberg) — Crude oil extended a surge from the lowest level in almost six years on speculation that some investors are buying contracts to close out bearish bets. U.S. gasoline rose amid a strike affecting some of the nation’s refineries.
West Texas Intermediate futures gained as much as 4.8 percent on Monday, while Brent increased as much as 5 percent, before paring those advances. Hedge funds and other speculators held the largest number of short contracts in WTI in four years last week. The U.S. grade rose 8.3 percent on Jan. 30, the biggest one-day gain since June 2012. more…
(Bloomberg) — The strike by oil workers at plants accounting for 10 percent of U.S. refining capacity entered a second day Monday in the biggest walkout since 1980. Crude futures gained.
The United Steelworkers union that represents employees at more than 200 refineries, terminals, pipelines and chemical plants stopped work Sunday at nine sites after failing to agree on a renewed labor contract. The union rejected five offers made by Royal Dutch Shell Plc on behalf of companies including Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. since talks began Jan. 21. more…
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Crude oil prices fell on Monday after U.S. unions called a refinery strike and traders cashed in on strong price gains last week when the market soared on a sharp drop in U.S. drilling.
Despite the decline, analysts said that record open interest – the number of outstanding futures contracts – indicated that prices may have bottomed out. more…
(Reuters) – Oil prices dipped on Friday following slight gains in the previous session and analysts said the outlook remained weak, with production high and producers reducing operating costs to adjust to lower export revenues.
Global oil prices had firmed slightly on Thursday but not before U.S. crude hit a near-six-year low and benchmark Brent pared gains on data showing fresh additions to record-high U.S. oil inventories. more…
(Bloomberg) — Oil traded near the lowest price in almost six years in New York after U.S. crude stockpiles climbed to the highest level since at least 1982.
West Texas Intermediate futures were little changed following Wednesday’s 3.9 percent drop. Crude inventories in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil consumer, expanded by 8.87 million barrels to 406.7 million last week, the Energy Information Administration reported. Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it will cut $15 billion of spending over the next three years. more…
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell, erasing an earlier rally, as crude oil’s plunge to its lowest level in more than six years sent energy shares lower. Treasuries climbed after the Federal Reserve maintained a pledge to be “patient” on interest rates, citing international risks to the economy.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index closed down 1.4 percent by 4 p.m. in New York, erasing an earlier 0.6 percent gain as energy companies fell the most in three weeks. U.S. oil tumbled 3.9 percent to below $45 a barrel on data showing the highest American supplies of the commodity in more than 30 years. Apple Inc. jumped 5.7 percent on record earnings. Ten-year Treasury yields slid by 10 basis points to 1.72 percent. New Zealand’s dollar slumped as policy makers signaled a long pause on rates.
U.S. data showed oil inventories rose to the highest level in records going back to 1982, stoking concern over a supply glut. Equities reversed early gains fueled by Apple’s results and a cash-flow forecast from Boeing Co. In a statement after its two-day meeting, the Fed said it’s confronting divergent economic forces as it weighs the timing of the first U.S. rate increase since 2006. While boosting their assessment of the economy, officials said inflation will probably slow further.more…
Collapsing crude prices are confronting scores of smaller U.S. oil producers with the grim choice of either shutting older high-cost wells or burning through cash in the hope of riding out the downturn.
As oil prices fell by more than half over the last six months from more than $100 per barrel, the U.S. oil industry responded by slowing its blistering growth and dialing back expansion plans.
Now, with U.S. crude around $46 a barrel, operators are already closing some small old wells, known as strippers, and tens of thousands of similar wells are on the verge of losing money. A further slide could, by some estimates, idle an equivalent of up to 2 percent of U.S. supply, slowing overall output growth more than expected or even leaving it flat. more…
Futures climbed as much as 2.6 percent in London and 3.1 percent in New York after the Saudi royal court announced the death in a statement. King Salman bin Abdulaziz, who succeeds Abdullah on the throne, said he would maintain his predecessor’s policies. Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi, who led OPEC’s November decision to defend market share against surging U.S. shale supplies, remains in his post, according to state-run Saudi Press Agency.
“It was expected the oil market would react nervously to the king’s death,” said Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS AG in Zurich. “But it’s likely to be a short-term reaction as the majority of market participants don’t expect a change in Saudi policy. Since the bounce, prices have drifted lower again.”more…
The bank cut its forecasts for global benchmark crude prices, predicting inventories will increase over the first half of this year, according to an e-mailed report. Excess storage and tanker capacity suggests the market can run a surplus far longer than it has in the past, said Goldman analysts including Jeffrey Currie in New York.
The U.S. is pumping oil at the fastest pace in more than three decades, helped by a shale boom that’s unlocked supplies from formations including the Eagle Ford in Texas and the Bakken in North Dakota. Prices slumped almost 50 percent last year as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries resisted output cuts even amid a global surplus that Qatar estimates at 2 million barrels a day.
“To keep all capital sidelined and curtail investment in shale until the market has re-balanced, we believe prices need to stay lower for longer,” Goldman said in the report. “The search for a new equilibrium in oil markets continues.”more…
Futures climbed 0.5 percent in New York after rising 1.5 percent yesterday. U.S. crude stockpiles shrank by 3.06 million barrels to 382.4 million in the week ended Jan. 2, the Energy Information Administration said yesterday. A median increase of 700,000 barrels was projected in a Bloomberg survey. Credit Suisse Group AG cut its forecast for this year’s increase in U.S. crude output by 500,000 barrels a day.
“We were due for a minor correction upwards,” Michael Poulsen, an analyst at Global Risk Management Ltd. in Middelfart, Denmark, said by e-mail. “On an isolated basis, crude draws were mildly bullish. Intraday fluctuations of 3 percent seem to be the temporary new normal.”more…
Brent futures dropped as much as 2.3 percent for a fifth day of losses. Crude stockpiles in the world’s biggest consumer probably expanded by 700,000 barrels last week, a Bloomberg News survey showed before an Energy Information Administration report today. China, the second-largest oil user, won’t drive a market rebound in 2015 as its net imports will slow, according to Citigroup Inc.
Oil slumped by almost half last year, the most since the 2008 financial crisis, as the U.S. pumped the most crude in more than three decades and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries resisted calls to cut output. The market’s oversupply may take “months or years” to be absorbed, United Arab Emirates Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said.
“It’s fallen below $50, wow,” Mark Keenan, the head of commodities research for Asia at Societe Generale SA in Singapore, said by phone today. “The fall continues. All in all, there are very few factors that would support the likelihood of a bounce from this level.”
Brent for February settlement slid as much as $1.18 to $49.92 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange and was at $50.08 at 4:01 p.m. Singapore time. The contract decreased $2.01 to $51.10 yesterday, the lowest close since April 30, 2009. The European benchmark crude traded at a premium of $2.93 to West Texas Intermediate.more…
Libyan output has fallen below 300,000 barrels a day, the lowest since May, after militants shifted attacks to energy facilities including the country’s largest oil export terminal, according to Energy Aspects Ltd. estimates. The U.S. Commerce Department said lease condensate “processed through a crude oil distillation tower” is a petroleum product, exempt from U.S. export restrictions.
Oil has slumped 45 percent this year, set for the biggest annual decline since 2008, as the highest U.S. production in more than three decades contributed to a global surplus estimated by Qatar at 2 million barrels a day. Saudi Arabia, which is steering the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to resist cutting output, has said it’s confident that prices will rebound as economic growth boosts demand.
“The market is rebounding on the ongoing concerns about Libya,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group in Chicago. “It does seem that the U.S. export wall is coming down. It’s another reason to cover your shorts.”
WTI for February delivery rose 51 cents, or 1 percent, to $54.12 on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier falling as far as $52.70, the lowest since May 2009. The volume of all futures traded was about 37 percent below the 100-day average for the time of day.more…
West Texas Intermediate climbed as much as 3.5 percent in New York and Brent 2.9 percent in London. A measure of expected WTI futures movements and a gauge of options value was at the highest level since October 2011, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
While Ali Al-Naimi, Saudi Arabia’s oil minister, said yesterday that a slump in prices was temporary, he also said it would be “difficult, if not impossible” for OPEC to curb its oil production amid a glut, the Saudi Press Agency reported. Prices rose immediately after his remarks, before ending the day at the lowest in five years. The nation accounted for about 13 percent of global oil output last year, BP Plc estimates.more…
At least six companies, including Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PXD) and Noble Energy Inc. (NBL), used a strategy known as a three-way collar that doesn’t guarantee a minimum price if crude falls below a certain level, according to company filings. While three-ways can be cheaper than other hedges, they can leave drillers exposed to steep declines.
“Producers are inherently bullish,” said Mike Corley, the founder of Mercatus Energy Advisors, a Houston-based firm that advises companies on hedging strategies. “It’s just the nature of the business. You’re not going to go drill holes in the ground if you think prices are going down.”more…
They have poured the most money in more than four years into exchange-traded products that track oil as prices fell 18 percent this month. It’s the third consecutive month that the four biggest U.S. funds have received money, during which time futures have plunged 41 percent.
“It’s a testament that after such a wild selloff people are more and more eager to step in and wait for this eventual rebound,” said Stoyan Bojinov, a Chicago-based analyst at ETF Database. “Oil looked cheap a month ago and it’s even cheaper today, that’s why we continue to see these inflows.”
Oil prices have tumbled by half since June amid surging production and slower than expected demand growth. Output in the U.S. is the highest in three decades, and OPEC, responsible for about 40 percent of global supply, maintained its output target at a Nov. 27 meeting. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said last week that consumption around the world next year will be 390,000 barrels a day less in 2015 than it forecast in October. more…
Futures slid as much as 1.8 percent in London. Crude could fall to as low as $40 a barrel amid a price war or if divisions emerge in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said an official at Iran’s oil ministry. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reduced its price forecasts for next year while also downgrading its production outlook for a second month. U.S. output is at a three-decade high.more…
The 12-nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries kept its output target unchanged even after the steepest slump in oil prices since the global recession, prompting speculation it has abandoned its role as a swing producer. Yesterday’s decision in Vienna propelled futures to the lowest since 2010, a level that means some shale projects may lose money.
“We are entering a new era for oil prices, where the market itself will manage supply, no longer Saudi Arabia and OPEC,” said Mike Wittner, the head of oil research at Societe Generale SA in New York. “It’s huge. This is a signal that they’re throwing in the towel. The markets have changed for many years to come.” more…
Futures dropped as much as 0.6 percent in London. Venezuela, one of 12 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, met with Russia to discuss ways to support oil prices, said the foreign ministry in Caracas. A large production cut isn’t in OPEC’s interest because that will bolster an expansion in U.S. shale supply, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
Oil has slumped into a bear market as the U.S. pumps at the fastest pace in more than three decades, fueling speculation that the market is oversupplied. Japan, the world’s third-biggest consumer, slid into a recession after its economy shrank in the third quarter. OPEC, responsible for about 40 percent of global supply, is scheduled to gather Nov. 27 in Vienna.
“More investors are now assuming that OPEC producers are unlikely to cut output,” Hong Sung Ki, an analyst at Samsung Futures Co. in Seoul, said by phone today. “There are still a lot of uncertainties. All eyes are on the OPEC meeting.”more…
OPEC, which supplies about 40 percent of the world’s oil, meets Nov. 27 to debate supply. The 12-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which has a production target of 30 million barrels a day, pumped 30.974 million barrels a day in October, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“I don’t think there will be any cut in the production,” Al-Omair said at a conference in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. “We feel prices will settle down once surplus oil is absorbed.” more…
Oil has dropped into a bear market this year, with prices falling almost 30 percent since June amid a global glut. OPEC won’t cut its collective output when it meets this month and global oil prices will stabilize once the surplus is absorbed, Kuwait Oil Minister Ali Al-Omair said at an oil conference in Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Arab Emirates, yesterday.
All projects under way now will go ahead with oil at $80 a barrel, London-based BP Chief Executive Officer Robert Dudley said at the conference. Total, based in Paris, can proceeed with its projects at $80, Arnaud Breuillac, president of exploration and production, also said in Abu Dhabi.
Brent crude, benchmark for more than half of the world’s oil, fell 0.5 percent today to $81.97 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe in London, extending this year’s retreat to 26 percent.
“We have only sanctioned or approved projects based on an $80 oil price,” Dudley said. “We’ve been doing that three or four years so there isn’t any project that we’re working on today, particularly those big capital projects, that we have any different view of.” more…
The OPEC basket, the best measure of what the oil exporters earn per barrel, fell to $78.67 yesterday, the group said by e-mail today. That’s the lowest since October 22, 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
U.S. oil production rose to the highest in at least 31 years amid slowing global demand, helping drive crude into a bear market last month. The largest producers in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries reduced prices rather than cut output, with Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran offering the biggest discounts to buyers in Asia this month since at least 2009. The group will meet in Vienna on Nov. 27 to discuss whether to cut output to support prices.
“Saudi Arabia seems to have other aims than protecting the price,” Carsten Fritsch, an analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt, said by e-mail. “The Saudis’ attitude might only change if the other members agree to contribute to a cut, the likelihood of which is slim at best.”more…
Futures fell as much as 3.7 percent to $75.84 a barrel, the weakest since Oct. 4, 2011. Saudi Arabian Oil Co. reduced December differentials for all grades it ships to the U.S., while supplies to Asia and Europe were priced higher, according to an e-mailed statement yesterday. U.S. crude inventories climbed by 1.9 million barrels last week to a four-month high, a Bloomberg News survey shows before government data tomorrow.
Oil slid in October by the most since May 2012 as leading members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries resisted calls to cut output. Global supplies are rising, with the U.S. pumping at the fastest pace in more than three decades.
“Saudi Arabia isn’t inspiring the sentiment that they are trying to force customers to take less,” Olivier Jakob, managing director at Petromatrix GmbH in Zug, Switzerland, said by e-mail. “The only solution seen by the market to reduce the oversupplied outlook is an OPEC cut led by Saudi Arabia.”more…
Developers of Alberta’s oil sands can use trains to reach the world’s largest refining market or the Energy East conduit to Canada’s Atlantic coast that TransCanada Corp. (TRP) is also proposing, Prentice said in an Oct. 31 interview at Bloomberg’s Calgary office.
Awaiting a U.S. decision on Keystone XL since 2008, Calgary-based TransCanada applied with Canadian regulators last week to build Energy East, a 4,600-kilometer (2,859-mile) link from Alberta to tidewater in New Brunswick. The C$12 billion ($10.6 billion) pipeline would be North America’s largest crude conduit, carrying 1.1 million barrels of oil a day without crossing into the U.S.
“The debate about Keystone is not a debate about whether, under the free trade agreement, Canadian crude can make its way to the Gulf Coast,” Prentice said, adding that the additional cost to ship crude by tanker from Canada’s Atlantic Coast is marginal. “It’s actually not that far from New Brunswick.”more…
Bank of America Corp. and BNP Paribas SA predict prices will hold above $80 a barrel. Commerzbank AG also sees that level as a possible low for Brent crude. They’re in part counting on OPEC cutting output — some say as soon as next month — to compensate for recent declines in demand.
North Sea Brent, the benchmark for more than half the world’s oil, has slid by more than $30 a barrel from its June high to below $83 a barrel today amid a supply glut and slower global growth. Ministers from the 12-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will meet in Vienna on Nov. 27 to discuss production and price levels.
“We are almost at the floor,” Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity markets strategy at BNP Paribas in London, said by phone yesterday. He estimates that Brent will be supported at $80 to $85 a barrel and could rebound to $95 by year-end. “It’s not in OPEC’s interest to see prices too low for too long a period.”more…
Futures slid as much as 2.4 percent in New York, declining for the seventh time in eight days. WTI’s losses have accelerated since it dropped below $100 a barrel in July. The contract plunged about 25 percent in the past three months. An American Petroleum Institute report yesterday showed that U.S. crude supplies surged more than 10 million barrels last week.
Prices have collapsed amid speculation that Saudi Arabia and other members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will refrain from cuts needed to drain a surplus, according to Commerzbank AG.more…
Companies turning to debt because they don’t have enough cash to fund drilling may have to cut back on expansion plans, analysts and investors said. The S&P/TSX Energy Index has slid 13 percent this month through yesterday and Brent crude has plummeted 27 percent from a June 19 high. Oil futures in New York fell below $80 a barrel today for the first time since June 2012.
“You’re in trouble unless you have the cash-flow base like the big guys,” said Sameer Uplenchwar, an analyst at Ghs Securities Canada Ltd. in Calgary. “New projects are more expensive than expanding existing ones.”more…
Oil consumption will increase by about 650,000 barrels a day this year, the Paris-based agency said in its monthly market report today. The reduction of 250,000 barrels a day from a previous estimate is the fourth in a row and means growth will be about half what it anticipated in June. Crude prices have plunged to a four-year low amid a glut.
“The sell-off is putting a spotlight on weaker-than-expected demand as a leading factor behind the drops,” said the IEA, which advises 29 nations on energy policy. A “staggering” increase in supply has also weakened prices. more…
Futures extended losses after the U.S. Energy Information Administration cut its 2014 and 2015 crude price forecasts because of rising output and reduced demand. The International Monetary Fund cut its outlook for global growth in 2015. U.S. crude inventories expanded by 2 million barrels last week, a Bloomberg News survey showed before government data tomorrow.
“The dire economic condition is really worsening,” said Gene McGillian, an analyst and broker at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. “The market is worried about the global economy and that’s where the selling pressure is from. The EIA’s been saying that production is kind of outpacing demand.”more…
The European benchmark crude has fallen 20 percent from its peak in June. WTI slid as much as 2.8 percent to $88.18 a barrel in New York before paring losses. The market retreated yesterday after Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, cut its official selling price for to Asia to the lowest since 2008.
“It’s been slaughter the last few days,” Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA Inc. in New York, said by phone. “Supply has been outpacing demand and that doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. We finally broke through $90 after yesterday’s move by the Saudis showed that they’re fighting for market share.”more…
“Supply is the important thing and Saudi Arabia is in the process of rebalancing the market,” Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS in Zurich, said by e-mail yesterday. “The weakness in crude oil prices should come to an end.”more…
The spread between WTI and Brent shrank to $2.63 at today’s close, the smallest gap since Aug. 9. 2013. The U.S. economy expanded in the second quarter at the fastest rate since the fourth quarter of 2011, government data showed Sept. 26. The improving American outlook contrasts with Europe, where a gauge of economic confidence published today slipped to the lowest level since November.
“It’s a tale of two cities,” John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy, said by phone. “The respective demand environments in the U.S. and Europe have diverged and that’s being reflected in the price.” more…
Futures dropped as much as 0.9 percent in New York and 0.8 percent in London. Both grades were heading for their biggest quarterly loss in more than two years. The dollar reached its highest level against the euro since November 2012, curbing the appeal of commodities, amid speculation the Federal Reserve will increase interest rates. Gauges of Chinese manufacturing are due tomorrow and on Oct. 1, and U.S. payrolls data will be released on Oct. 3.more…
Futures swung between gains and losses in New York, little changed from the close on Sept. 22. Crude stockpiles probably expanded by 750,000 barrels last week to 363 million, according to a Bloomberg News survey before an Energy Information Administration report today. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are among countries that joined the first wave of U.S.-led air strikes in Syria against Islamic State.
“We’re still seeing more supply,” Jonathan Barratt, the Sydney-based chief investment officer at Ayers Alliance Securities, said by phone today. “The market is starting to discount a lot of what’s happening in the Middle East.” more…
Industry sources said Chinese firm Unipec, the marketing arm of Beijing-backed oil giant Sinopec, has booked the 3.2-million-barrel TI Europe, one of just a handful of Ultra Large Crude Carriers (ULCC) still in service. It is listed as the world’s largest ocean-going vessel by tonnage, and is as long as the Empire State building is tall at 380 metres. more…
Wilson once told investors that the acreage might contain the equivalent of 1.2 billion barrels of oil. He fixes his interlocutor with a blue-eyed stare and leans forward. At 67, he bench-presses 250 pounds (110 kilograms) and looks it. Outside the expansive windows of his 67th-floor executive suite, downtown Houston steams in its July smog.
He responds, unsmiling, with a one-syllable obscenity: “F—.”more…
The global benchmark slipped as much as $1.06, or 1.1 percent, in London to $99.76 a barrel in London. The last time it traded below $100 was June 24, 2013. China’s purchases declined 2.4 percent in August, compared with a 1.6 percent drop in July, data from the Beijing-based customs administration show. Chinese exports rose by 9.4 percent. more…
Futures dropped as much as 0.4 percent in New York. Supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for WTI contracts, expanded by 508,000 barrels to 20.7 million last week, the Energy Information Administration reported yesterday. That’s the highest level since July. Libya may boost production to 1 million barrels a day by the end of the September, according to state-run National Oil Corp.
“It looks like we’ve removed almost all of the risk premium associated with geopolitical problems, and we’re now returning to a more normal examination of supply and demand,” Michael McCarthy, a chief strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney, said by phone. The EIA data showed “we might be looking at a period of stability.”more…
Crude supplies probably fell 2.5 million barrels last week, according to a Bloomberg survey before tomorrow’s Energy Information Administration report. Orders for U.S. durable goods jumped in July by the most on record, the Commerce Department reported. Russian President Vladimir Putin began talks with his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, as tensions flared on the two nations’ border.
“The market is up on expectations supplies will stay tight,” Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago, said by phone. “The economic data is giving us some support. The durable goods number increases demand expectations.”more…
Futures dropped as much as 0.6 percent in London. Libya’s production increased even as Islamist militias seized Tripoli’s international airport, while supply from Iraq remained uninterrupted by its struggle to form a new government. CME Group Inc., the world’s largest futures market, halted most of its Globex platform for about four hours, suspending contracts including oil and commodities. more…
Futures lost as much as 0.3 percent in London. U.S. jets and drone aircraft hit Islamic State fighters in multiple attacks intended to protect American personnel and prevent a massacre of ethnic and religious minorities in northern Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki deployed troops and tanks on the streets of Baghdad as he resists U.S. President Barack Obama’s push for a more inclusive government. more…
Futures traded in New York declined 4.4 percent this week as the dollar strengthened before data on U.S. employment today. The nation’s gasoline inventories rose to the highest level in four months last week as demand fell and crude output advanced to the highest since 1986 in early July, government data show. Brent is poised for a weekly decline amid speculation that energy supplies from Russia will be unaffected by further sanctions over Ukraine.”more…
Details will be set out by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. About half the U.K. will be open for bids, yet the areas considered to be shale gas prospects are smaller, and are already around half-covered by licenses.
“Shale gas in Britain has the potential to provide us with greater energy security, jobs and growth,” Business and Energy Minister Matt Hancock said in an e-mailed statement. “We must act carefully, minimizing risks, to explore how much of our large resource can be recovered to give the U.K. a new home-grown source of energy.”more…
Russia, the world’s biggest energy exporter, disputed U.S. accusations that it supplied anti-aircraft weapons to rebels in neighboring Ukraine. President Barack Obama said he expects the downing of the Malaysian Air (MAS) jet in Ukraine to push European countries to enact tougher sanctions against Russia. WTI ended the week down 1 percent on speculation that rising U.S. fuel supplies will prompt refineries to use less crude.more…
WTI futures rose as much as 0.7 percent in New York, extending a 2 percent increase yesterday that was the biggest gain since June 12. The Boeing Co. 777 crashed en route to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam in the main battleground of Ukraine’s civil war, threatening to escalate the worst crisis between the West and Russia since the end of the Cold War. Israel’s movement of troops and tanks into the coastal enclave marks the first significant ground operation in Gaza since 2009.more…
Futures slid as much as 0.5 percent in New York and are poised for the longest run of weekly declines since November. Libya’s supply gained as the Sharara field resumed production and two oil-export terminals reopened. Crude stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, rose the most since January, the Energy Information Administration reported on July 9. Fighting in Iraq, the second-largest OPEC member, hasn’t spread to the country’s south, home to three-quarters of its output. more…
U.S. production of crude oil, along with liquids separated from natural gas, surpassed all other countries this year with daily output exceeding 11 million barrels in the first quarter, the bank said in a report today. The country became the world’s largest natural gas producer in 2010. The International Energy Agency said in June that the U.S. was the biggest producer of oil and natural gas liquids. more…
Brent and WTI futures were little changed today. Libya will start shipping crude from Es Sider and Ras Lanuf at full capacity after taking back control of the ports from rebels, according to National Oil Corp. Fighting in Iraq hasn’t spread to the south, home to more than three-quarters of its output. Hurricane Arthur made landfall on the U.S. East Coast, the first to do so since 2012. more…
Crude supplies probably fell by 2.5 million barrels, the fourth decline in five weeks, according to the median of nine replies in a Bloomberg survey. Stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for WTI, fell to the lowest level in more than five years last month, Energy Information Administration data show. Prices surged to nine-month highs in June as violence flared in Iraq, OPEC’s second-biggest oil producer. more…
Futures gained as much as 1.4 percent in New York. The Commerce Department has granted Pioneer Natural Resources Co.’s request to classify stabilized condensates as petroleum products eligible for export, the company said. That widens the definition of what kinds of oil can be shipped abroad, said Robert Dillon, a spokesman for the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. more…
Russia will require Western companies to provide the modern drilling and production gear — and techniques such as hydraulic fracturing — that are essential to unlocking its $8.2 trillion worth of barrels still underground, more…
Futures slid as much as 0.7 percent in London. Kurdish troops are defending Kirkuk, Iraq’s fourth-biggest oilfield, against Islamist militants after deploying outside their semi-autonomous region in the country’s north. Exports from Iraq’s Basrah oil terminal on the Persian Gulf are set to climb in July, preliminary cargo data compiled by Bloomberg show. The nation’s output hasn’t been hurt by the escalation, the International Energy Agency said today, more…
Futures rose as much as 1.1 percent in New York, extending a 2 percent rally yesterday, the most in two months. Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul Kareem al-Luaibi speculated that U.S. planes may bomb his nation’s north as militants linked to al-Qaeda, who captured the city of Mosul this week, moved south toward Baghdad, more…
Futures rose as much as 0.4 percent in New York as fighters from a breakaway al-Qaeda group took control of the city of Mosul and there were conflicting reports about the situation in Baiji, home to the Iraq’s biggest refinery, more…
Futures rose as much as 0.5 percent in New York. Crude stockpiles probably fell by 1.5 million barrels in the week ended June 6, according to a Bloomberg News survey before data from the Energy Information Administration tomorrow, more…
Benchmark U.S. crude for June delivery was up 16 cents to $102.18 a barrel at 0620 GMT in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 52 cents Friday to close at $102.02 and gained about 2 percent for the week, more…