2019-05-31 12:35:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $65
REUTERS - Oil fell on Friday and held on track for its biggest monthly drop in six months as comments from U.S. President Donald Trump ramped up trade tensions, weighing on the demand outlook.
Brent futures are heading for a 10 percent slide in May and WTI for a 13 percent drop, their biggest monthly losses since last November.
Front-month Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $65.72 at 0844 GMT, down $1.15 from last session's close.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $55.85 per barrel, down 74 cents from their last settlement.
Both grades earlier hit their lowest since March 8.
U.S. President Donald Trump vowed on Thursday to slap tariffs on all goods from Mexico unless it stops illegal immigration, firing up fears over economic growth and appetite for oil.
The Mexico trade dispute adds to a trade war between the United States and China, which many analysts expect to trigger a recession..
China's factory activity shrank more than expected in May, an official survey showed on Friday.
U.S. OUTPUT BACK TO RECORD
Crude prices have also been under pressure from a return in U.S. oil production to a record 12.3 million barrels per day, and a much smaller than expected decline in U.S. stockpiles.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude stocks fell by around 300,000 barrels last week, to 476.49 million barrels.
That was much less than the 900,000-barrel decline analysts had forecast in a Reuters poll, and well below the 5.3 million-barrel drawdown seen by the API industry body.
Giving a floor to prices, top oil exporter Saudi Arabia's increased output in May was not enough to compensate for lower Iranian exports, which collapsed after the United States tightened the screws on Tehran, a Reuters survey found.
Washington will sanction any country that buys oil from Iran after the expiration of waivers on May 2, U.S. Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook said on Thursday.
The Wall Street Journal had reported earlier on Thursday that countries like China and India that were issued waivers in November to buy Iranian oil could continue the purchases after May 2 until they reached a negotiated cap.
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Earlier:
2019, May, 30, 18:25:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $69 YET
Brent crude futures were at $69.03 per barrel at 1325 GMT, down 42 cents, or 0.6%, from their last close. WTI crude futures were up 23 cents, or 0.4%, at $59.04 a barrel, supported by expectations of a fall in U.S. crude inventories.
2019, May, 29, 11:20:00
OIL PRICE: ABOVE $69 YET
Front-month Brent crude futures were at $69.53 a barrel at 0641 GMT, down 58 cents, or 0.8%, from last session’s close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $58.46 per barrel, down 70 cents, or 1.2%, from their last settlement.
2019, May, 27, 11:55:00
OIL PRICE: ABOVE $68
Spot Brent crude futures were firmer at $68.82 per barrel, 13 cents, or 0.2%, above their last close. WTI crude futures were at $58.43 per barrel at 0700 GMT, down 20 cents, or 0.3%, from their last settlement.
2019, May, 27, 11:40:00
OILFIELD SERVICES RATING DOWN
"Oilfield services companies will no longer be able to generate the high operating margins they did in 2014," Carin Dehne-Kiley, an analyst at S&P, wrote Friday in a report to investors. "The oilfield services industry has fundamentally changed due to permanent efficiency and productivity gains realized by E&P companies as well as investor sentiment calling for E&P companies to live within cash flow and limit production growth."
2019, May, 24, 10:25:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $67
Brent crude futures were at $68.48 per barrel at 0654 GMT, up 72 cents, or 1.1%, from their last close, with prices underpinned by OPEC supply cuts and Middle East tensions. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 66 cents, or 1.1%, at $58.57 per barrel.
2019, May, 24, 10:20:00
OPEC+ COMPLIANCE 168%
Although compliance to the cuts had a slow start, OPEC's JMMC noted in a press release following their meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, that compliance had hit a record high of 168% in April 2019. Average conformity reached 120% since January 2019.
2019, May, 23, 12:25:00
СОТРУДНИЧЕСТВО ОПЕК+ РОССИЯ
“Российские компании согласны с тем, что необходимо продолжать сотрудничество. Взаимодействие направлено как на восстановление баланса на рынке, так и на поддержание справедливой, стабильной стоимости углеводородов, - отметил Александр Новак. - Россия готова оперативно реагировать на запросы рынка, мы можем увеличить производство из-за дефицита рынка. В качестве примера гибкости напомню, что мы вслед за ростом спроса прошлым летом увеличили производство и сократили его к концу года, когда на рынке был избыток».
