Trader Vitol Says Oil Prices May Rise Even More on Tight Supply - Bloomberg

Trader Vitol Says Oil Prices May Rise Even More on Tight Supply - Bloomberg

The world’s biggest independent oil trader said crude prices, already up more than 10% this year, could rise even more because of tight supplies.

“These prices are justified,” Mike Muller, head of Asia for Vitol Group, said Sunday. “Strong backwardation is very much justified,” he said, referring to a bullish pattern whereby near-term futures are more expensive than later ones.

Oil posted a fourth-straight gain last week, its longest rising streak since October, amid signs consumption will hold up despite the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. At the same time, spare capacity is dwindling as some of the world’s biggest producers struggle to boost output.

Brent crude has jumped 11% this year to over $86 a barrel, extending last year’s gain of 50%.

Muller said that while natural gas prices have climbed enough to cause some industrial users -- including in Pakistan and Europe -- to cut back on consumption, the oil market hadn’t reached that point.

#Libya Says Oil Output Back to 1.2 Million Barrels a Day - Bloomberg

Libya Says Oil Output Back to 1.2 Million Barrels a Day - Bloomberg

Libya’s oil production has picked up again after a blockade of its western fields ended and ports in the east reopened, according to the OPEC member’s energy minister.

Output is around 1.2 million barrels a day, Mohammed Oun said in response to questions from Bloomberg on Sunday. That was its normal level before a round of closures hit the North African nation’s oil facilities late last year, sending daily production as low as 700,000 barrels.

Its biggest field, Sharara, was pumping about 280,000 barrels a day as of Saturday, near its capacity.

Production has fluctuated significantly since mid-December, when militias forced western fields, including Sharara, to close down as part of a dispute over pay and politics. The sector was further hit when a major pipeline was shut for repairs early this month, and then again when bad weather caused at least four eastern ports to close.

Bouri, Farwah, Mellitah and Zawiya -- all in the west -- are still closed because of bad weather, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation who isn’t authorized to speak to media.

#Saudi index at highest in over 15 years; Egypt falls | Reuters

Saudi index at highest in over 15 years; Egypt falls | Reuters

Saudi Arabia's stock market ended higher on Sunday, in response to a rise in crude prices on Friday, while the Egyptian bourse retreated due to a selloff in blue-chips.

Oil prices, a key catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets, settled higher on Friday, boosted by supply constraints and worries of a Russian attack on neighbouring Ukraine, despite sources saying China is set to release crude reserves around the Lunar New Year. read more

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) gained 0.3%, extending gains from the previous session when it reached its highest since July 2006, with Saudi Arabian Mining Company (1211.SE) advancing 3.4%.

Among other gainers, petrochemical maker Saudi Basic Industries Corp (2010.SE) added 1.2%.

Separately, Saudi Arabia waived its requirement for visitors to be fully vaccinated to allow soccer players from Spain to compete in the Spanish Super Cup on Saudi soil, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing sources. read more

The Qatari index (.QSI) climbed 0.9%, buoyed by a 1.6% rise in petrochemical firm Industries Qatar (IQCD.QA) and a 1.2% gain in Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), ahead of its earnings announcement.

Oman (.MSX30) dropped 0.6%, hit by a 6.6% slide in Bank Dhofar (BKDB.OM), which reported a more than 17% decrease in annual net profit.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) declined 1.5%, with losses across the board weighing on the index as investors continue to secure their gains.

#UAE steps up anti-dirty money measures to avoid global watchlist | Financial Times

UAE steps up anti-dirty money measures to avoid global watchlist | Financial Times

The United Arab Emirates has significantly increased its ability to clamp down on flows of dirty money, a senior official said, as the Middle East’s main financial hub battles to keep itself off a global money-laundering watchlist.

In April 2020, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force warned the UAE, long seen as a global magnet for illicit funds, that it needed to work more closely with international counterparts and to tighten compliance in sectors vulnerable to abuse, especially gold trading and luxury real estate.

“We took on board the recommendations and started to change,” Ahmed Al Sayegh, a minister of state in the foreign ministry, told the Financial Times. “We think we have made significant progress — the bar has been set very high.”

Western officials say the UAE has made steps forward but is unlikely to avoid being placed on the FATF’s so-called “grey list”, which includes 23 countries such as Panama, Syria, Yemen and Zimbabwe. The multilateral body is due to make a final decision in February. Only Iran and North Korea are on the black list. “Regardless of the outcome, we now have an action plan,” Al Sayegh said.

Analysis: Physical crude oil market steams ahead after Omicron blip | Reuters

Analysis: Physical crude oil market steams ahead after Omicron blip | Reuters

Frantic oil buying driven by supply outages and signs the Omicron variant won't be as disruptive as feared has pushed some crude grades to multi-year highs, suggesting the rally in Brent futures could be sustained a while longer, traders said.

Prices for physical cargoes do not always trade in tandem with oil futures and when differentials widen rapidly and considerably, they can indicate speculators have oversold or overbought futures versus fundamentals.

Brent oil futures have jumped 10% since the start of the year but the physical market is still racing ahead, with differentials for some grades hitting multi-year highs, suggesting a tight market will push the futures rally on.

"These are crazy numbers. There clearly is physical tightness," a North Sea oil trader said.

#UAE banks to report robust results for full year 2021 | Banking – Gulf News

UAE banks to report robust results for full year 2021 | Banking – Gulf News

UAE banks are expected to report robust results for full year 2021 supported by improved economic conditions, rising operating incomes, better operational efficiencies and a modest recovery in interest margins.

Top UAE banks had delivered consistent improvement in asset quality and profitability in the first three quarters of 2021 supported by steady recovery in the local economy.

Declining costs, improving economy

Data shows, at the end of the third quarter, cost to income (C/I ratio) was at the lowest since 2018 with operating incomes far outpacing costs.

While the focus on reining in operating costs through optimization of branch network, rationalistaion of workforce, operating efficiencies gained from recent mergers and significant adoption of digitialisation have seen big cost savings for banks.

2,000 companies from 106 countries register with #Sharjah SPC Free Zone in 2021 | Business – Gulf News

2,000 companies from 106 countries register with Sharjah SPC Free Zone in 2021 | Business – Gulf News

As many as 2,000 new companies from 106 countries, mainly the UK, India, Pakistan, the Philippines and Lebanon, registered with the Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone (SPC Free Zone) in 2021, it said on Sunday.

The number of newly registered publishing companies and allied businesses has risen over the previous year, reflecting the emirate’s ongoing efforts to attract investments in diverse economic sectors, including creative industries, through the free zone’s portfolio of advanced services and state-of-the-art facilities that cater to investors’ needs.

Covering an area of 40,000 square metres, SPC provides 600 furnished offices for publishing entrepreneurs and 6,000 square metres of space for investors planning to create their own spaces. It also houses more than 20 conference rooms, stores, service facilities, and a public administration branch of the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship to speed up investor visa processing.

Open 24/7, SPC Free Zone offers investors a wide range of benefits, including 100 per cent foreign ownership for all nationalities, 100 per cent repatriation of capital, 100 per cent exemption from personal income tax, corporate tax, import and export tax, as well as access to all other services at cost-effective rates, including manpower, energy, living, printing, and logistics.

Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone was awarded the Quality Management System Certificate (ISO 9001:2015) in 2021. In the same year, it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mashreq Bank to offer priority access to various financial and banking services to investors and entrepreneurs in different market sectors.

‎World Bank raises #SaudiArabia’s 2022 growth forecast to 4.9% | ZAWYA MENA Edition

‎World Bank raises Saudi Arabia’s 2022 growth forecast to 4.9% | ZAWYA MENA Edition

The World Bank has raised Saudi Arabia’s 2022 growth forecast from 3.3 percent to 4.9 percent.

In a statement, the bank said the Kingdom would record 2.3 percent economic growth in 2023, compared to the previous forecast of 3.2 percent.

It added that the oil sector will likely witness strong recovery, which will reflect positively on exports.

The non-oil business is also expected to benefit from the large number of vaccinated persons against coronavirus, as well as accelerated investments, the bank said.

In December, Saudi Arabia approved the general budget for the fiscal year of 2022, with an estimated total revenues of SR1045 billion and spending of SR955 billion.

European, Middle Eastern & African Stocks - Bloomberg #Kuwait #Israel #SaudiArabia #Qatar mid-session

European, Middle Eastern & African Stocks - Bloomberg #Kuwait #Israel #SaudiArabia #Qatar mid-session

Hottest Countries: #Kuwait, a Wealthy Oil Exporter, is Becoming Unlivable - Bloomberg

Hottest Countries: Kuwait, a Wealthy Oil Exporter, is Becoming Unlivable - Bloomberg

Trying to catch a bus at the Maliya station in Kuwait City can be unbearable in the summer.

About two-thirds of the city’s buses pass through the hub, and schedules are unreliable. Fumes from bumper-to-bumper traffic fill the air. Small shelters offer refuge to a handful of people, if they squeeze. Dozens end up standing in the sun, sometimes using umbrellas to shield themselves.

Global warming is smashing temperature records all over the world, but Kuwait — one of the hottest countries on the planet — is fast becoming unlivable. In 2016, thermometers hit 54C, the highest reading on Earth in the last 76 years. Last year, for the first time, they breached 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in June, weeks ahead of usual peak weather. Parts of Kuwait could get as much as 4.5C hotter from 2071 to 2100 compared with the historical average, according to the Environment Public Authority, making large areas of the country uninhabitable.

For wildlife, it almost is. Dead birds appear on rooftops in the brutal summer months, unable to find shade or water. Vets are inundated with stray cats, brought in by people who’ve found them near death from heat exhaustion and dehydration. Even wild foxes are abandoning a desert that no longer blooms after the rains for what small patches of green remain in the city, where they’re treated as pests.