Tag Archives: oil prices

OPEC and the entire energy industry should thank Saudi Arabia for helping oil prices recover from negative territory last year, and the market would be best left to the Kingdom to manage, according to a senior investment banking energy commentator. “They’ve done a magnificent job of managing their production program …

UAE is still in discussions with Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ members for better terms under the current agreement that will expire in April 2022, an informed source of the discussions told Arab News. Reuters said earlier that UAE has reached a compromise to assign the Gulf nation a quota of 3.65 …

Saudi Arabia and Oman have called for continued cooperation between OPEC and other producers to help stabilize the market. OPEC+ last week postponed talks among producers after differences emerged between Saudi Arabia and the UAE over future output strategy. Saudi Arabia and Oman are both part of the OPEC+ alliance …

The financial adviser to Iraq’s prime minister said that “in the absence of coordination and understandings between OPEC producers, the beginnings of a price war will be formed again,” the Iraqi News Agency (INA) quoted him as saying on Monday. Mazhar Mohammed Saleh added that “the increases in production within …

Oil held steady as tensions between Saudi Arabia and the UAE escalated over the weekend, leaving the market with few clues about how supply talks will proceed on Monday after discussions reached an impasse last week. The clash was unresolved just hours before Monday’s meeting was scheduled to start. The Saudis are standing …

Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said in a video posted on Saturday on the ministry’s Facebook page that BP was considering withdrawing from Iraq, and that Russia’s Lukoil had sent a formal notification saying it wanted to sell its stake in the West Qurna-2 field to Chinese companies. Abdul …

The recent decline in Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves, a measure of its ability to support its dollar-pegged currency, was partly due to a lag between import payments and export receipts, the Saudi central bank governor told Reuters. Net foreign assets at the central bank, known as SAMA, dropped monthly by …

The White House said on Friday it is concerned about the impact of rising oil prices on US consumers but believes producers have ample ability to pump enough crude. “Currently we believe that there is enough spare oil production capacity globally,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters. “Because …

Even with oil prices surging toward $75 a barrel, US shale producers are keeping their pledges to hold the line on spending and keep output flat, a departure from previous boom cycles. This year’s run up in crude prices, and oil output curbs imposed by the OPEC+ producers group, historically …

OPEC, Russia and their allies will stick to plans for a phased easing of oil production restrictions from May to July amid upbeat forecasts for a recovery in global demand and despite surging coronavirus cases in India, Brazil and Japan. The group known as OPEC+ ditched plans to hold a …

Saudi Arabia supports the International Monetary Fund (IMF) proposal to allocate new special drawing rights worth $650 billion to increase reserves, said Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, during his participation in The Spring Meetings 2021, Al Arabiya reported. This would support efforts for economic recovery by providing additional liquidity to the …

When India’s government last month asked refiners to speed up diversification and reduce dependence on the Middle East – days after OPEC+ said it would maintain production cuts – it sent a message about its clout and foreshadowed changes to the world’s energy maps. It was a move that had …

Indian oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday described his Saudi counterpart’s advice to reduce oil stores to tackle high crude prices as “undiplomatic”. “That was in a way (an) undiplomatic answer by some of our old friend. I politely disagree with that kind of approach. “Certainly India has its own …

Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo took the stage at the world’s largest energy conference in 2019 to declare an age of U.S. dominance after a decade of rapid shale development made the United States the world’s top oil and gas producer. Two years later, the oil industry is …

Saudi Arabia’s Sheikh Zaki Yamani, the embodiment of the ascent of Arab petroleum power and the face of the 1973 oil embargo that brought the West to its knees, has died. Yamani was a witness to the 1975 murder of the Saudi king who had plucked him, a non-royal, from …

Saudi Arabia will invest more than $20 billion in its domestic military industry over the next decade as part of aggressive plans to boost local military spending, the head of the kingdom’s military industry regulator said on Saturday. The Gulf state wants to develop and manufacture more weapons and military …

China said on Wednesday it was seeking details about 25 of its nationals who were among 61 crew on two supertankers seized by Indonesia on suspicion of illegally transferring oil. Indonesia said on Sunday it had seized the vessels after they were detected making the transfer from Iranian-flagged MT Horse …

Iran may cooperate with the United States on oil and security in the Gulf, but not on Israel, the Iranian foreign minister said in remarks published on Saturday. Ties between Tehran and Washington worsened under the administration of former President Donald Trump, who in 2018 withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear …

Saudi Arabia has put on hold financing plans potentially worth billions of dollars for the expansion of Riyadh’s airport, sources said, a sign that the kingdom is re-assessing strategic priorities after the coronavirus crisis. Riyadh Airports Company, which manages and operates King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, approached …

Oil prices rose on Wednesday to their highest since February 2020 after Saudi Arabia agreed to reduce output more than expected in a meeting with allied producers, while industry figures showed U.S. crude stockpiles were down last week. Brent crude rose as much as nearly 1% to $54.09 a barrel, …

Iran has instructed its oil ministry to prepare installations for production and sale of crude oil at full capacity within three months, state media said on Sunday, ahead of a possible easing of U.S. sanctions after President-elect Joe Biden takes office. They quoted President Hassan Rouhani as saying that Iran …

The top U.S. envoy on Venezuela called on the incoming Biden administration on Thursday to use the leverage he believes has been gained from years of tough sanctions aimed at ousting socialist President Nicolas Maduro and urged against offering him any “giveaways.” In an interview with Reuters, Elliott Abrams, President …

Saudi Electricity Company, which runs the Kingdom’s power generation and distribution, has unveiled a far-reaching restructuring of its finances and regulatory set-up to “to provide its services with higher levels of efficiency and reliability.” As part of the shake-up, the government will turn its liabilities from SEC – amounting to …

Saudi Aramco 2222.SE said on Monday it has hired a group of banks ahead of a multi-tranche U.S. dollar-denominated bond issuance, as the world’s largest oil company seeks to raise cash amid lower oil prices. The announcement comes as Gulf issuers show no sign of slowing this year’s blitz on …

The United States on Monday imposed fresh Iran-related sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic’s oil sector, including the Iranian Ministry of Petroleum, in Washington’s latest move to increase pressure on Tehran. The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said it was slapping sanctions on key actors in Iran’s oil sector for …

In 1973, Arab members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries brought the U.S. economy to its knees. Now, the cartel created 60 years ago is more likely to do Washington’s bidding. Since Saudi Arabia and other Arab OPEC members imposed their famous oil embargo as retribution for U.S. support …

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Cyprus on Tuesday that Moscow was ready to help mediate in any talks with Turkey over energy exploration in the east Mediterranean Sea. A decades-old rift between Turkey and Cyprus, which is backed by Greece, has come to a head this year in disputes …

Saudi King Salman told President Vladimir Putin of Russia of his keenness to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries, with special emphasis on their partnership within the OPEC+ alliance of oil producing countries. In a phone call between the new mega-development of NEOM and Moscow, the two leaders also …

Iraq is seeking an exemption from an OPEC+ deal curbing oil production during the first quarter of 2021 but will adhere to the cuts over the next three months, Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said on Wednesday. Abdul Jabbar has spoken about the exemption to OPEC oil ministers in three …

Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O) surged over 10% to a record high on Friday after reporting blockbuster quarterly results, helping the iPhone maker eclipse Saudi Aramco to become the world’s most valuable publicly listed company. Apple’s stock ended the session at $425.04, putting its market capitalization at $1.82 trillion, according to the …

Every day, energy merchants collect and scrutinize whatever information they can find on fuel demand to get a trading edge: from satellite data tracking oil tankers worldwide to thermal images from cameras on pipelines and storage tanks. Real-time data on fuel demand would be the ultimate prize. On-the-spot gasoline consumption …

Iran plans to export oil from a port on its Gulf of Oman coast by March, the president said on Thursday, a shift that would avoid using the Strait of Hormuz shipping route that has been a focus of regional tension for decades. Tensions have spiked between Tehran and Washington …

The six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations are facing their worst economic crisis in history amid the double shock of plunging oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic, the Institute of International Finance (IIF) said. Overall real gross domestic product (GDP) will contract 4.4% this year, despite some indications that the …

The third cargo of an Iranian tanker flotilla carrying fuel for gasoline-thirsty Venezuela on Tuesday reached the nation’s exclusive economic zone as the previous two were discharging at state run PDVSA’s ports, Refinitiv Eikon data showed. The Iran-flagged tanker Petunia crossed the Caribbean Sea earlier on Tuesday, following the same …

Iraq and Saudi Arabia agreed on Saturday to continue working to re-balance markets and stressed their commitment to output cuts agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other allies, Saudi state news agency SPA said. The comments came after Iraq’s Finance Minister Ali Allawi, who is …

Oman’s decision to liquidate GlassPoint Solar company comes after the sharp fall in oil and gas prices caused by the global economic slowdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Oman news agency said, citing a statement from State General Reserve Fund. Oman owns 31% of shares in GlassPoint Solar. …

Saudi Aramco is looking to restructure its deal to acquire a controlling stake in petrochemicals maker SABIC after a more than 40% drop in SABIC’s value following a slump in oil prices in coronavirus pandemic, two sources told Reuters. Aramco last year agreed to buy a 70% stake in Saudi …

President Donald Trump said on Monday that his administration was considering the possibility of stopping incoming Saudi Arabian crude oil shipments as a measure to support the battered domestic drilling industry. “Well, I’ll look at it,” Trump told reporters at a daily news conference after he was asked about requests …

Behind a Saudi-Russian truce to stabilise oil markets with a record output cut, market players are seeing the two production heavyweights still trading blows in the physical market. The rivals said last week they were ready to take measures if necessary to balance the market by cutting combined output with …

Saudi Arabia and other oil producers in the OPEC+ group pushed back on Friday on a Mexican plan to cut less than requested under plans for global supply curbs, two sources from the OPEC+ group said on Friday. One source said the dispute, which held up efforts to finalise the …

Deep output cuts by OPEC and other oil producing nations will not prevent a huge build up of crude, the head of the IEA said on Friday, urging the world’s richest economies to discuss broader ways to stabilise oil markets. Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, told …

President Vladimir Putin will meet the heads of Russia’s top oil companies for talks on Friday, the Kremlin said, describing the atmosphere on the global market as “unfavourable”. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call that the meeting would be held in the same format as one …

Top U.S. officials have for now put aside a proposal for an alliance with Saudi Arabia to manage the global oil market, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter, an idea one of them said came from White House national security advisers. That the concept was even considered …

A Saudi Arabian energy ministry official said on Friday there had been no contact between the Saudi and Russian energy ministers over any increase in the number of OPEC+ countries, nor any discussion of a joint agreement to balance oil markets. The comments come after a senior Russian official said …