SAUDI'S OIL PRODUCTION DOWN 400 TBD

MEOG - Saudi Arabia reportedly cut its crude production by more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) in December 2018.  Saudi crude production sat at 10.65 million bpd (mbpd) that month, down from 11.07 mbpd in November.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister, Khalid al-Falih said in December that the country would pump 10.2 mbpd in January, less than the 10.3 mbpd agreed upon at OPEC's December meeting; Saudi Arabia plans to cut an additionally 100,000 bpd from its output.

Saudi exports to the US faced the biggest drop, with a 60% decrease in December to just over 350,000 bpd. In November, it exported more than 800,000 bpd to the US.

At its early December meeting, OPEC and allies agreed to cut production by 1.2 mbpd in 2019. OPEC member nations will cut production by 800,000 bpd, mostly shouldered by Saudi Arabia, while allies will cut production by 400,000 bpd. Libya, Venezuela and Iran are exempt from cuts.

US President Donald Trump has been critical of OPEC, urging the organisation to avoid production cuts ahead of its meeting in Vienna. Oil prices are a key point for US voters, and Trump wants to keep them low despite growing US shale production.

Although Trump would like to see lower oil prices, analysts have noted that low prices could ultimately hurt the US, which has ramped up its production; shale production in the Permian region faced bottlenecks, with logistics, transportation and workforce issues, and requires further investment from operators. A surge of supply from US producers was one factor in the recent drop in oil prices, as well as the country's issuance of eight waivers surrounding sanctions against Iran.

Meanwhile, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, who ultimately agreed to production cuts, noted that OPEC should continue to monitor the market in early 2018.

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Earlier: 

2018, December, 26, 07:40:00 ОПЕК + РОССИЯ: МИНУС 2.5% МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - Принято консолидированное решение о совместных действиях с коллегами из ОПЕК и не ОПЕК по сокращению добычи на 2,5% для стран ОПЕК и 2% для стран не ОПЕК.

2018, December, 26, 07:25:00 OPEC: 26 MBBL SURPLUS AN - “Based on available figures, we have around 26 million barrels of surplus ... compared to 340 million barrels in early 2017,” Al-Mazrouei told a press conference in Kuwait City.

2018, December, 24, 11:45:00 SAUDIS BUDGET 2019: $295 BLN MEOG - Saudi Arabia's Council of Ministers approved its 2019 budget, the largest in the Kingdom's history. It has planned to spend $295bn in the coming year, and estimates revenue at $260bn. Deficit is therefore estimated at $35bn, down 32% from the expected deficit for 2018, $52bn. Actual deficit in 2018 sat at $36.2bn.

2018, December, 21, 14:35:00 SAUDIS NEED $84 PLATTS - Saudi Arabia will require oil prices higher than $84/b to avoid running another deficit, analysts warned after the kingdom announced on Tuesday record government spending in its state budget for 2019.

2018, December, 21, 14:30:00 INVESTMENT FOR SAUDIS: DOUBLED REUTERS - Foreign investment in Saudi Arabia more than doubled in 2018 to 13 billion riyals ($3.5 billion), its economy and planning minister said on Wednesday, despite a global furor following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October.

2018, December, 17, 10:40:00 KING SALMAN ENERGY PARK: $6 BLN MEOG - King Salman Energy Park (SPARK), a 50sqkm "energy city megaproject" in Saudi Arabia, is one of the Kingdom's most impressive endeavours into localisation so far. Once operational, it is expected to generate 100,000 direct and indirect jobs and should contribute $6bn to Saudi Arabia's GDP annually.

2018, December, 14, 09:20:00 RUSSIA - SAUDI ARABIA COOPERATION IEA - Cooperation between Russia and Saudi Arabia is now the basis of production management with these two countries having a large capacity to swing output one way or the other. For them, prices falling further would place their budgets under great stress. Русский | English