XINHUA - China imported 4.71 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in August, up 51.5 percent year on year, the country's customs authority said Sunday.

OPEC - Total oil demand for 2018 is now estimated at 98.82 mb/d. In 2019, world oil demand growth is forecast to rise by 1.41 mb/d. Total world oil demand in 2019 is now projected to surpass 100 mb/d for the first time and reach 100.23 mb/d.

REUTERS - Beijing on Tuesday said it would tax U.S. products worth $60 billion effective Sept. 24 in retaliation for tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump in an escalating trade war.

PLATTS - Speaking on the sidelines of the Gastech conference in Barcelona, Mikhelson said Novatek could review its strategy to reach 57 million mt/year of LNG production by 2030 in the coming years as it continues to expand its already huge gas resource base in northern Russia.

PLATTS - South Korea's crude oil imports from Iran plunged 86.5% in August from a year earlier due to pending re-imposition of US sanctions on Tehran, according to preliminary data released by the Korea Customs Service Monday.

REUTERS - Venezuela gave China another stake in the OPEC nation’s oil industry and signed several other deals in the energy sector, but Beijing made no mention of new funds for Caracas during President Nicolas Maduro’s visit to his key financier on Friday.

ROSNEFT - Rosneft and the Chinese National Oil and Gas Corporation (CNPC) signed the Agreement on Cooperation in Exploration and Production in the Russian Federation in the framework of the IV Eastern Economic Forum.

ROSNEFT - Under the Agreement the parties plan to build over 160 CNG stations in Russia and the possibility of using LNG as natural gas motor fuel is being discussed.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - «Азиатско-Тихоокеанский регион – мировой драйвер по развитию экономики, по потреблению энергоресурсов и торговли», - подчеркнул Александр Новак.

CNBC - "We can see that the pricing situation today depends not just on the supply/demand balance or the general economic situation but also on the uncertainty that we observe today in the global markets: the trade wars, the sanctions that the U.S. pursue," Novak said, speaking to CNBC's Geoff Cutmore at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, Russia.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - «Мы наблюдаем положительную динамику экспорта энергоресурсов из России в Корею. В период с января по июнь 2018 г. поставки нефтепродуктов увеличились на 900 тыс. тонн, а поставки СПГ - на 500 тыс. тонн по сравнению с тем же периодом 2017 г. Показатели экспорта нефти и угля также держатся на высоком уровне и в период с января по июнь 2018 г. составили 5,3 и 12,8 млн тонн соответственно», - сказал глава Минэнерго.

IAEA - Overall, the new projections suggest that nuclear power may struggle to maintain its current place in the world’s energy mix. In the low case to 2030, the projections show nuclear electricity generating capacity falling by more than 10% from a net installed capacity of 392 gigawatts (electrical) (GW(e)) at the end of 2017. In the high case, generating capacity increases 30% to 511 GW(e), a drop of 45 GW(e) from last year’s projection. Longer term, generating capacity declines to 2040 in the low case before rebounding to 2030 levels by mid-century, when nuclear is seen providing 2.8% of global generating capacity compared with 5.7% today.

GAZPROM - A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Wang Yilin, Chairman of the Board of Directors of CNPC, took place at the 4th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

GAZPROM - A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Hidenori Takaoka, Chief Executive Officer of the Energy Business Group of Mitsubishi Corporation, took place at the 4th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

GAZPROM - A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Masami Iijima, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mitsui & Co., Ltd., took place at the 4th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.