Sunday 5 February 2023

Oil Market Faces Production Issue in 2024, Goldman’s Currie Says: February 5, 2023 - Bloomberg

Oil Price, Goldman Sachs, Latest News: February 5, 2023 - Bloomberg

Oil will rise back above $100 a barrel this year and may face a serious supply problem in 2024 as spare production capacity runs out, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

With sanctions likely to cause Russian oil exports to drop and Chinese demand expected to recover as the country ends its Covid Zero policy, prices will rise above $100 from their current level of around $80, according to Goldman.

A lack of spending in the industry on production needed to meet demand will also be a driver of higher prices, and this lack of capacity may become a big issue by 2024, analyst Jeff Currie said on the sidelines of a conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday.

“The commodity super cycle is a sequence of price spikes with each high higher and each low higher,” said Currie, who heads commodities research at Goldman. By May, oil markets should flip to a deficit of supply compared to demand, he said. That could use up much of the unused capacity global producers have, which will be positive for prices, he said.

#SaudiArabia Business Confidence Hits Two-Year High As Boom Continues: February 5, 2023 - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia Business Confidence: February 5, 2023 - Bloomberg


Confidence among businesses in Saudi Arabia’s non-oil sector rose to a two-year high in January, as firms reported strong new order growth and started to see improvements in supply chains and softening inflation.

New order growth rose compared to December and was the second highest level in the past 16 months, according to a survey of purchasing managers compiled by S&P Global. Foreign demand also increased rapidly and to a greater degree than at the end of 2022.

The Riyad Bank Saudi PMI rose to 58.2 from 56.9 in December, well above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction. Last month’s figure was the second-highest recorded since September 2021 after November’s more than seven-year high.

It’s the latest sign that last year’s economic boom is continuing even as oil prices fall from recent highs. Overall growth was an estimated 8.7% last year, Saudi official projections showed, making it the fastest growing major economy.

#Saudi Arabian shares drop on lower oil prices; Egypt rises | Reuters

Saudi Arabian shares drop on lower oil prices; Egypt rises | Reuters


Saudi Arabian stock market closed lower on Sunday, in response to fall in oil prices on Friday amid concern about the European Union embargo on Russian refined products.

Oil, which fuels the region's growth, declined on Friday, with Brent crude ending down $2.23, or 2.7%, at $79.94 a barrel.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister warned on Saturday that sanctions and underinvestment in the energy sector could result in a shortage of energy supplies in future.

The European Union has imposed a series of sanctions against Russia, reducing Russian energy exports.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) dropped 1.34%, the worst day since Dec. 7. The index was undermined by losses in almost all sectors barring real estate.

Saudi oil giant Aramco (2222.SE) sank 1.5%, while the world's largest Islamic bank by market capitalization, Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), dropped 1.9%.

Among the losers, Dr Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical (4013.SE) and Riyad Bank (1010.SE) lost 2.2% and 3.5% respectively.

Qatar's stock index (.QSI) ended down 0.4%, with almost all its constituent stocks in negative territory.

Qatar Aluminum Manufacturing (QAMC.QA) dropped 5.9% and Industries Qatar (IQCD.QA) declined 2.2%.

However, the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA) ended its four session losing streak, rising 3.5%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) inched up 0.1%, bouncing back from four sessions of losses.

The index was lifted by a 1.4% gain in Commercial International Bank Egypt (COMI.CA) and 3.1% rise in Talaat Mostafa (TMGH.CA).

Among the gainers, Palm Hills Development(PHDC.CA) and GB Auto (AUTO.CA) jumped 10.3% and 9.2% respectively.

Separately, Egypt's net foreign reserves rose to $34.224 bln in January from $34.003 bln in December, the central bank reported on Sunday.

The sheikh’s empire driving #AbuDhabi’s meteoric stock market rise | Financial Times

The sheikh’s empire driving Abu Dhabi’s meteoric stock market rise | Financial Times


Abu Dhabi’s stock market was long viewed as a minor Gulf exchange, garnering little attention outside the region — a reflection of the relatively small private sector in the oil-rich emirate that has long been dominated by the state. 

But in less than four years its market capitalisation has almost quintupled to more than $650bn, a surge largely driven by the extraordinary rise of one stock — International Holding Company. 

Chaired by one of the United Arab Emirates’ most powerful figures, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, IHC has been transformed from a $200mn firm with interests in fish farms and real estate into a conglomerate with more than 400 subsidiaries and a market capitalisation of $236bn — bigger than Walt Disney, McDonald’s or L’OrĂ©al. 

Its weight rises to $324bn, or half the market, when combined with eight listed subsidiaries, including the $65bn Alpha Dhabi. 

The transformation has mystified bankers and analysts, who have raised concerns about transparency and the blurring of the private sector, the state and the ruling family at a time when Abu Dhabi is seeking to use its oil windfall to burnish its credentials as regional finance hub.

Hong Kong’s Lee Aims to Encourage Aramco to List in City - Bloomberg

Hong Kong’s Lee Aims to Encourage Aramco to List in City - Bloomberg


Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee is seeking to convince oil giant Saudi Aramco and its units to consider a secondary listing in the Asian financial hub as he embarks on his first official visit to the Middle East, according to the South China Morning Post.

Lee is kicking off a campaign to attract new investment to the city following almost three years of pandemic isolation. The leader will meet top executives of Saudi Aramco and highlight what Hong Kong has to offer as an international financial center, according to the report, which quoted the leader as saying he will try his best to encourage the oil producer to list in the city.

Hong Kong has been a popular center for sovereign funds and companies to list, the report cited Lee as saying Sunday after arriving in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh. Aramco’s businesses are “very diversified with its different subsidiaries” and the plan is to “encourage them to come to Hong Kong for participation, including listing in the city,” the South China Morning Post quoted him as saying.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co., as the $2 trillion company is formally known, listed in Saudi capital Riyadh in 2019. Prior to the company’s $29 billion share offering, the world’s largest on record, it opted to shun an international listing.

#Saudi non-oil private sector activity jumps in January on higher output, orders | Reuters

Saudi non-oil private sector activity jumps in January on higher output, orders | Reuters

Growth in Saudi Arabia's non-oil business activity accelerated in January, having hit a three-month low the previous month, a survey showed on Sunday, supported by an increase in new orders and output.

The seasonally adjusted Riyad Bank Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers' Index increased to 58.2 in January, from 56.9 in the previous month and well above the 50 mark separating growth from contraction.

Earlier this week, the kingdom's statistics agency released flash estimates of GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2022, during which the non-oil activities sector grew 6.2%, outperforming broader economic growth of 5.4% in the quarter.

"This growth confirms the Saudi position as the fastest-growing economy among the Group of 20 countries despite economic headwinds," said Naif Al-Ghaith, Chief Economist at Riyad Bank.