BLOOMBERG - Saudi Arabia, which along with Russia is trying to garner support for lifting output limits, told the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries that its daily production rose 162,000 barrels a day to 10.030 million in May compared with the previous month, a person with knowledge of the data said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

EIA - Brent crude oil spot prices averaged $77 per barrel (b) in May, an increase of $5/b from the April level and the highest monthly average price since November 2014. EIA forecasts Brent spot prices will average $71/b in 2018 and $68/b in 2019. The 2019 forecast price is $2/b higher than in the May STEO. EIA expects West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices will average almost $7/b lower than Brent prices in 2018 and $6/b lower than Brent prices in 2019

REUTERS - Brent crude futures LCOc1, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $76.79 per barrel at 0654 GMT, down 53 cents, or 0.7 percent, from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were down 38 cents, or 0.6 percent, at $65.57 a barrel.

OPEC - World oil demand averaged 97.20 mb/d in 2017, up by 1.7 per cent y-o-y, with the largest increases taking place in Asia and Pacific region (particularly China and India), Europe and North America. The 2017 oil demand in Africa and the Middle East grew by around 100,000 b/d, as compared to 2016, while oil demand declined in Latin America for the third year in a row.

BLOOMBERG - Venezuela wrote to fellow OPEC members urging them to unite against U.S. sanctions, echoing a similar letter from Iran, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

REUTERS - Brent crude LCOc1 rose 78 cents to $76.16 a barrel by 0645 GMT after dropping to its lowest since May 8 on Tuesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were up 33 cents at $65.85 a barrel, having touched a near two-month low on Tuesday.

REUTERS - “We have to look into the situation which has panned out on the market today, from the point of view of the volume cuts, inventories decline, shortages on the market, and to adjust the figures,” Novak told reporters.

REUTERS - U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 10 cents, or 0.2 percent, $65.71 a barrel by 2353 GMT. Last week, WTI lost around 3 percent, adding to a near 5 percent decline a week before. The global benchmark Brent fell 26 cents, or 0.34 percent, to $76.53 a barrel.

SHANA - The country exported 2.4 mbd of crude oil and 300,000 b/d of gas condensate, ultra light crude oil, during May.

SHANA - The Iranian Minister of Petroleum further stressed that should the sanctions lead to any reduction in the oil market share of the I.R. Iran, Tehran, once the illegal limitations were resolved, reserves the right to return to its oil market share in the shortest possible time and resume its normal production-level and that it would not accept any limitations in that regard.

REUTERS - U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 lost 16 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $66.88 a barrel by 0423 GMT, after falling almost 2 percent on Thursday. Global benchmark Brent crude LCOc1, which was little changed in the previous session, was down 9 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $77.47 per barrel.

REUTERS - Brent LCOc1 rose 40 cents to $75.79 a barrel by 0925 GMT, after trading as low as $74.81 earlier. U.S. crude CLc1 was up 25 cents at $66.98.

REUTERS - The global oil industry should ramp up investment to ensure it can cope with future consumption growth and avoid supply shortages, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo told a conference in Baku.

OPEC - The JMMC reported that participating countries have achieved a conformity level of 152% during the fourth month of the second year of the Declaration of Cooperation. This demonstrates the commitment of participating countries to the restoration of market stability, which is intended to serve the long term interests of producers, consumers and the global economy.

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