NOV - National Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE: NOV) reported a fourth quarter 2017 net loss of $14 million, or $0.04 per share. Revenues for the fourth quarter were $1.97 billion, an increase of seven percent compared to the third quarter and an increase of 16 percent from the fourth quarter of 2016. Operating loss for the fourth quarter was $111 million, or 5.6 percent of sales. Adjusted EBITDA (operating profit excluding depreciation, amortization, and other items) for the fourth quarter was $197 million, or 10.0 percent of sales, an increase of $30 million from the third quarter. Other items were $133 million, pre-tax, and primarily consisted of charges for inventory write-downs, facility closures and severance. Cash flow from operations for the fourth quarter was $321 million.

TOTAL - Total has signed an agreement to sell a 25% interest in the Exploration Block 11B/12B, offshore South Africa, to Qatar Petroleum. The transaction remains subject to regulatory approval.

FT - Mexico secured almost $100bn in investment in its most successful oil tender to date as Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell positioned itself as the biggest player in deepwater exploration and new companies including Qatar Petroleum burst on to the scene.

SHANA - Iranian Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh says the country's petroleum output has increased by 165,000 b/d in the first 10 months of the current Iranian calendar year which began on March 21 compared to the same period last year.

BP - BP and Shandong Dongming Petrochemical Group (Dongming Petrochemical) announced the signing of joint venture agreements to develop a leading branded retail fuels and convenience business covering the Chinese provinces of Shandong, Henan and Hebei. Subject to regulatory approvals, the partnership with Dongming Petrochemical will start operations in 2018 and the network is expected to grow to 500 sites in 10 years. BP has a 49% equity share of the joint venture and Dongming Petrochemical the remaining 51%.

EXXONMOBIL - ExxonMobil Earns $19.7 Billion in 2017; $8.4 Billion in Fourth Quarter

CHEVRON - Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) reported earnings of $3.1 billion ($1.64 per share – diluted) for fourth quarter 2017, compared with $415 million ($0.22 per share – diluted) in the 2016 fourth quarter. Included in the quarter were non-cash provisional tax benefits of $2.02 billion related to U.S. tax reform and a non-cash charge of $190 million related to a former mining asset. Foreign currency effects decreased earnings in the 2017 fourth quarter by $96 million.

BAKER HUGHES A GE - U.S. Rig Count is down 1 rig from last week to 946, with oil rigs up 6 to 765, gas rigs down 7 to 181, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged. Canada Rig Count is up 4 rigs from last week to 342, with oil rigs up 14 to 234 and gas rigs down 10 to 108.

PLATTS - Asian demand for oil products will outweigh current and upcoming refinery capacity by 2025, Tushar Tarun Bansal, Director at McKinsey, told attendees at S&P Global Platts annual Middle Distillates Conference in Antwerp Thursday.

PLATTS - President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the "war" on American energy is over in a State of the Union speech given as US crude oil output is set to reach levels not seen in more than 47 years.

BLOOMBERG - The Beijing-based explorer sees capital expenditures at 70 billion to 80 billion yuan ($11.1 billion to $12.7 billion) for 2018, it said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange Thursday. That’s an increase of as much as 60 percent from the previous year, which came in under target. It also raised its production estimate to between 470 million and 480 million barrels of oil equivalent, poised for the the first increase in three years.

SHELL - CCS earnings attributable to shareholders excluding identified items were $4.3 billion for the fourth quarter 2017 and $15.8 billion for the full year 2017, reflecting increased contributions from all businesses, compared with 2016. Full year earnings benefited mainly from higher realised oil, gas and LNG prices, improved refining performance and higher production from new fields, which offset the impact of field declines and divestments.

CONOCOPHILLIPS - ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) today reported fourth-quarter 2017 earnings of $1.6 billion, or $1.32 per share, compared with a fourth-quarter 2016 net loss of $35 million, or ($0.03) per share. Excluding special items, fourth-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings were $0.5 billion, or $0.45 per share, compared with a fourth-quarter 2016 adjusted net loss of $0.3 billion, or ($0.26) per share. Special items for the current quarter were primarily driven by benefits from U.S. tax reform and the settlement of Ecuador arbitration.

SHELL CEO BEN VAN BEURDEN Q4 2017 RESULTS 01-02-2018

BLOOMBERG - Oil exports from Qatar, one of OPEC’s smaller crude producers, to Japan last year slumped by almost a quarter to its lowest level since 1990, while shipments from giant supplier Saudi Arabia grew 8.1 percent, boosting its market share in the Asian nation to a record. Over in South Korea, imports from Qatar sank 26 percent to the least in seven years.