Saudi Arabia is strengthening energy ties with China, as the oil producer,...
Saudi Arabia is strengthening energy ties with China, as the oil producer, Aramco agreed to build a multi-billion dollar refining and chemicals project that will tap into the Asian country’s future demand.
The producer isn’t just targeting China. In January, Aramco moved further into Russia’s backyard, buying into Poland’s main refinery company and agreeing to supply crude into the Baltic region that had been traditionally dominated by Russian barrels.
These deals not only guarantee an outlet for Aramco’s crude for decades to come, they also provide its trading unit an opportunity to boost its business of supplying Saudi and other barrels to projects where it has stakes.
The energy sector is set for a lower start, as oil prices and energy receded modestly following strength...
The energy sector is set for a lower start, as oil prices and energy receded modestly following strength in the broader equity indices after Russian President Vladimir Putin said there were "certain positive shifts" in talks with Ukraine. Risk sentiment improved following the comments and is aiding broader equities while energy and oil move lower in the opposing direction.
WTI and Brent crude oil futures are swinging between gains and losses in early trading on continued concerns about supply disruptions for Russian oil and oil products, but are still on track for their biggest weekly decline since November. Oil prices have pulled back a bit this week on hopes that some producing countries may act to increase supply and fears about escalating bans on Russian oil persist. In the near term, supply gaps are unlikely to be filled by extra output from members of OPEC+ as some OPEC+ producers, including Angola and Nigeria, have struggled to meet their production targets, further limiting the group's ability to offset Russian supply losses. OPEC+ heavyweights Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which both bear grudges against Washington, have snubbed U.S. pleas to use their spare output capacity to tame rampant crude prices which threaten global recession after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Norwegian state oil company Equinor has stopped trading Russian oil as it winds down operations there in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. ~From Marketinsite
Crude Oil: The federal government’s EIA report revealed that crude inventories fell...
Crude Oil: The federal government’s EIA report revealed that crude inventories fell 1.9 million barrels compared to expectations of a 700,000-barrel decrease per the analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts. Continued strength in refinery demand accounted for the larger-than-expected stockpile draw with the world’s biggest oil consumer even as exports fell and U.S. production remained robust. Total domestic stocks now stand at 411.6 million barrels — 17.4% less than the year-ago figure and 13% lower than the five-year average.
The latest report also showed that supplies at the Cushing terminal (the key delivery hub for U.S. crude futures traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange) decreased 585,000 barrels to 22.2 million barrels.
Meanwhile, the crude supply cover was down from 27.1 days in the previous week to 27 days. In the year-ago period, the supply cover was 40.5 days.
