2020-02-03 12:25:00
OIL PRICE: ABOVE $56
REUTERS - Brent crude prices fell on Monday to their lowest in more than a year, dragged down by worries about lower demand in China, the world's largest oil importer, following a coronavirus outbreak there.
There are signs fuel demand has plunged in China as airlines have canceled flights to halt the spread of the coronavirus and as provinces delay the reopening of factories after the Lunar New Year holiday. Supply chains across the world's second-largest economy and crude consumer have been disrupted, prompting its biggest refiner Sinopec to cut output by about 12% this month.
Brent crude was at $56.44 a barrel by 0750 GMT, down 18 cents, or 0.3%, Prices dropped by as much as 2.1% to $55.42, the lowest since Jan. 4, 2019.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 10 cents to $51.66 a barrel, after earlier hitting a session low of $50.42, down 2.2% to the lowest since Jan. 14, 2019.
China's factory activity stalled in January as export orders fell, and analysts expect a big plunge in February's data as the virus outbreak hits demand in the country.
China's central bank planned to inject more liquidity to shore up its economy on Monday, and pledged over the weekend to use various monetary policy tools to help allay the impact of the virus outbreak.
"Travel restrictions and the extended shutdown of large parts of the Chinese industrial sector have weighed on oil demand and this is reflected in the weakness that we are seeing in the ICE Brent time spreads," ING commodity analysts said in a note.
The premium of the first-month Brent contract to the second-month contract narrowed to 9 cents a barrel on Monday from 70 cents a month ago, indicating that traders are not concerned about supply tightness because of the demand impact of the coronavirus.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)and its allies could bring forward to February a planned meeting in March to discuss the impact on oil demand from the virus flare-up. Already, OPEC and non-OPEC's Joint Technical Committee (JTC) are scheduled to meet in early February to assess the virus impact, OPEC+ sources said.
OPEC's oil output plunged in January to the lowest since 2009 after several members led by Saudi Arabia over-delivered on a new agreement to cut production and as Libya's supply slumped.
"They've done a good job of managing the price, but it is unexpected that demand would be impacted by something like a pandemic," Tony Nunan, a senior risk manager at Mitsubishi Corp in Tokyo.
"The expectation is that in the next meeting that they will deepen the (production) cuts" to support prices, he said.
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Earlier:
2020, January, 31, 12:35:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $59
Brent were 68 cents higher at $58.97 a barrel, WTI were up by 70 cents to $52.84 a barrel
2020, January, 29, 13:30:00
OIL PRICE: NEAR $60
Brent rose 66 cents, or 1.1%, to $60.17 a barrel. U.S. WTI was up 62 cents, or 1.2%, at $54.10 a barrel.
2020, January, 27, 15:00:00
OIL PRICE:NEAR $59
Brent fell by $1.79 a barrel, or 2.95%, to $58.90, WTI was down by $1.63, or 3%, at $52.55.
2020, January, 24, 13:45:00
OIL PRICE:NEAR $62
Brent were up 31 cents, or 0.5%, at $62.35 a barrel, WTI were up 27 cents, or 0.5% higher at $55.86 a barrel.
2020, January, 22, 12:55:00
OIL PRICE:NEAR $64
Brent was down 30 cents, or 0.5%, at $64.29 a barrel, WTI fell 33 cents, or 0.6%, to $58.05 a barrel
2020, January, 20, 12:20:00
OIL PRICE: NOT ABOVE $66
Brent were up by 70 cents, or 1.11%, to $65.55, WTI was up by 56 cents, or 1%, at $59.10 a barrel, after rising to $59.73, the highest since Jan. 10.
2020, January, 20, 12:05:00
OPEC'S OIL PRODUCTION DOWN 2 MBD
Recent statistics issued by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, highlighted a decrease in its production by 6.3 percent or some 2 million barrels per day in 2019, compared to 2018.
Chronicle:
2022, August, 12, 08:44:00
6TH ANNUAL LNG SUMMIT USA
The 6th Edition of Wisdom’s Much Acclaimed Annual LNG Summit Will Be Held Live in Houston - PREPARING THE INDUSTRY FOR THE RISE IN DEMAND FOR LNG
2022, August, 12, 08:43:00
2022 SAUDI PIPELINES INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE & EXIBITIONS
Eventat Co (a Saudi local company) is hosting the first-ever “2022 Saudi Pipelines International Conference & Exhibitions” from 4-6 October, 2022 at the Dhahran Expo, Dammam (Eastern Province), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The three-day conference and exhibition are dedicated to bringing together over “50+ Regional/International speakers, 100+ Sponsors/Exhibitors, 1000+ Delegates and 3000+ Visitors” from around the globe who carry significant interest in enhancing the pipelines lifecycle for the current and future.
2022, August, 12, 08:42:00
9TH INTERNATIONAL LNG CONGRESS LNGCON 2023
9th International LNG Congress (LNGCON 2023) 6-7 March, 2023
Link to the Congress website: https://bit.ly/3tXVmr7
2022, August, 12, 08:40:00
GERMANY'S HARD WINTER
With nearly half of German homes relying on gas for heating, the country faces potential rationing if it fails to secure sufficient reserves.
2022, August, 12, 08:35:00
LIMITED RUSSIA SANCTIONS
Russian oil production in July was only 310,000 b/d below prewar levels, a fall of less than 3 per cent, while total oil exports were down about 580,000 b/d, according to the IEA’s latest monthly oil report.
2022, August, 12, 08:30:00
BRITAIN'S HARD WINTER
Under the government’s latest “reasonable worst-case scenario,” Britain could face an electricity capacity shortfall totaling about a sixth of peak demand, even after emergency coal plants have been fired up, according to people familiar with the government’s planning.
2022, August, 12, 08:25:00
GLOBAL LNG UNCERTAINTY
The money lost is dwarfed by enormous profits both BP and Shell recorded this year on the back of soaring refining margins and high oil and gas prices.