Brent Drops From 4-Year Low as Saudi Discounts Spur Competition - Bloomberg

Brent Drops From 4-Year Low as Saudi Discounts Spur Competition - Bloomberg:



"Brent fell from a four-year low as Saudi Arabia offered customers in Asia the biggest discount on record for its crude, boosting speculation it’s defending market share. West Texas Intermediate fell in New York.



Futures fell as much as 0.9 percent in London and are headed for a second weekly decline. State-run Saudi Arabian Oil Co. widened its discount for Arab Light sales to Asia next month to $2 a barrel below a regional benchmark, according to a company statement. That’s the lowest in at least 14 years. The kingdom doesn’t want to subsidize Iran, Iraq and Venezuela and is willing to let the market decide prices, said Daniel Yergin, an energy analyst and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. 




Crude slumped 18 percent last month as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries maintained its output quota, letting prices decrease to a level that may slow U.S. production. Saudi Arabia has no price target and will let the market decide at what level oil should trade for now, said a person familiar with its policy."



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