UPDATE 2-MIDEAST STOCKS-Saudi slips after oil price drop, bomb attack; Egypt up | Reuters:
"Saudi Arabia's stock market fell in early trade on Sunday after oil prices fell and Islamic State militants carried out their first attack in the kingdom, while Egypt's bourse extended gains after rising above key technical resistance.
Brent oil fell $1.17, or 1.8 percent, to $65.37 a barrel on Friday, declining 2.1 percent on the week as a rallying dollar and profit-taking ahead of a long U.S. holiday weekend cut short a two-day rally.
Petrochemicals giant Saudi Basic Industries, whose profits are sensitive to oil prices, dropped 2.7 percent and was the main drag on Saudi Arabia's index which lost 0.7 percent."
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Sunday, 24 May 2015
Saudi Oil Supply Outpaces Rivals in Grab for Record China Demand - Bloomberg Business
Saudi Oil Supply Outpaces Rivals in Grab for Record China Demand - Bloomberg Business:
"Saudi Arabia expanded its share of China’s oil market last month, outpacing rival producers as they compete to meet record demand from the world’s biggest energy consumer.
China’s imports from the Middle East producer jumped 37 percent from a year earlier to the highest level since July 2013, according to customs data. The world’s biggest crude exporter was the No. 1 supplier to the Asian nation, accounting for 17.4 percent of its overseas purchases, up from 15.1 percent in March. The next three largest sellers -- Russia, Iran and Angola -- lost market share.
Record imports by China are contributing to a recovery in benchmark oil from a six-year low amid speculation the purchases will help shrink the global supply glut that drove crude’s collapse in 2014. Saudi Arabia has led OPEC’s policy of maintaining production to defend its market share and force U.S. shale drillers to curb the highest American output in more than three decades."
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"Saudi Arabia expanded its share of China’s oil market last month, outpacing rival producers as they compete to meet record demand from the world’s biggest energy consumer.
China’s imports from the Middle East producer jumped 37 percent from a year earlier to the highest level since July 2013, according to customs data. The world’s biggest crude exporter was the No. 1 supplier to the Asian nation, accounting for 17.4 percent of its overseas purchases, up from 15.1 percent in March. The next three largest sellers -- Russia, Iran and Angola -- lost market share.
Record imports by China are contributing to a recovery in benchmark oil from a six-year low amid speculation the purchases will help shrink the global supply glut that drove crude’s collapse in 2014. Saudi Arabia has led OPEC’s policy of maintaining production to defend its market share and force U.S. shale drillers to curb the highest American output in more than three decades."
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Wealthy Gulf investors should focus on Mena infrastructure, WEF’s Gordon Brown says | The National
Wealthy Gulf investors should focus on Mena infrastructure, WEF’s Gordon Brown says | The National:
"Gordon Brown, the former UK prime minister and current head of the World Economic Forum’s infrastructure initiative, urged wealthy Arabian Gulf states and individuals to invest in much-needed infrastructure projects in the poorer parts of the Middle East.
There is a huge spending deficit on infrastructure in the region compared to other parts of the world, Mr Brown noted.
According to a World Bank report, the Middle East and North Africa taken together invests only about 5 per cent of its collective GDP in infrastructure, compared to 15 per cent for China and 10 per cent on average globally."
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"Gordon Brown, the former UK prime minister and current head of the World Economic Forum’s infrastructure initiative, urged wealthy Arabian Gulf states and individuals to invest in much-needed infrastructure projects in the poorer parts of the Middle East.
There is a huge spending deficit on infrastructure in the region compared to other parts of the world, Mr Brown noted.
According to a World Bank report, the Middle East and North Africa taken together invests only about 5 per cent of its collective GDP in infrastructure, compared to 15 per cent for China and 10 per cent on average globally."
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Iraq oil revenue deal with Kurdish Regional Government expected soon | The National
Iraq oil revenue deal with Kurdish Regional Government expected soon | The National:
"A comprehensive deal over how Iraq’s oil output and revenue is managed – a crucial step to make progress on the political front – should be settled in a matter of weeks, according to Iraq’s deputy prime minister in charge of energy.
“We need a few weeks to work on it in council, then we will send it to the parliament for a vote,” said Baha Al Araji, Iraq’s deputy prime minister, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa gathering in Jordan. “We have three problems to solve, but they are not technical – they’re political with Kurdistan. In a few weeks a draft will be ready.”
The main dispute centres around the details of how the Kurdish Regional Government handles its exports and how the central government in Baghdad distributes money back to the KRG. There was a deal in place in December, in which the KRG committed to handing over 550,000 barrels of oil per day from areas under its control to Iraq’s state oil marketing organisation."
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"A comprehensive deal over how Iraq’s oil output and revenue is managed – a crucial step to make progress on the political front – should be settled in a matter of weeks, according to Iraq’s deputy prime minister in charge of energy.
“We need a few weeks to work on it in council, then we will send it to the parliament for a vote,” said Baha Al Araji, Iraq’s deputy prime minister, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa gathering in Jordan. “We have three problems to solve, but they are not technical – they’re political with Kurdistan. In a few weeks a draft will be ready.”
The main dispute centres around the details of how the Kurdish Regional Government handles its exports and how the central government in Baghdad distributes money back to the KRG. There was a deal in place in December, in which the KRG committed to handing over 550,000 barrels of oil per day from areas under its control to Iraq’s state oil marketing organisation."
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Mystery of the missing millions of barrels of oil | GulfNews.com
Mystery of the missing millions of barrels of oil | GulfNews.com:
"Oil-market watchers are struggling to reconcile the large estimated oversupply in the market with the much smaller build-up of reported inventories and narrowing contango in futures prices.
Some blame the barrel counters who compile official statistics on supply, demand and stocks. But the truth is that information on the world oil market is incomplete and it is easy for hundreds of millions of barrels of oil to disappear from the supply chain without being counted.
According to the three main statistical agencies, the global market has been oversupplied by between 1.5 million and 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) since the start of the year. Stockpiles should have increased by between 200 million and 350 million barrels, according to the International Energy Agency, Opec and the US Energy Information Administration."
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"Oil-market watchers are struggling to reconcile the large estimated oversupply in the market with the much smaller build-up of reported inventories and narrowing contango in futures prices.
Some blame the barrel counters who compile official statistics on supply, demand and stocks. But the truth is that information on the world oil market is incomplete and it is easy for hundreds of millions of barrels of oil to disappear from the supply chain without being counted.
According to the three main statistical agencies, the global market has been oversupplied by between 1.5 million and 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) since the start of the year. Stockpiles should have increased by between 200 million and 350 million barrels, according to the International Energy Agency, Opec and the US Energy Information Administration."
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UPDATE 1-MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets mixed after oil prices retreat | News by Country | Reuters
UPDATE 1-MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets mixed after oil prices retreat | News by Country | Reuters:
"Gulf stock markets were mixed in early trade on Sunday after oil prices fell and corporate news provided few positive catalysts.
Brent oil settled down $1.17, or 1.8 percent, at $65.37 a barrel on Friday, falling 2.1 percent on the week as a rallying dollar and profit-taking ahead of a long U.S. holiday weekend cut short a two-day rally.
Dubai's index dropped 0.7 percent as most stocks declined. Developer DAMAC and builder Arabtec , the most traded stocks, were down 1.3 and 3.3 percent respectively."
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"Gulf stock markets were mixed in early trade on Sunday after oil prices fell and corporate news provided few positive catalysts.
Brent oil settled down $1.17, or 1.8 percent, at $65.37 a barrel on Friday, falling 2.1 percent on the week as a rallying dollar and profit-taking ahead of a long U.S. holiday weekend cut short a two-day rally.
Dubai's index dropped 0.7 percent as most stocks declined. Developer DAMAC and builder Arabtec , the most traded stocks, were down 1.3 and 3.3 percent respectively."
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