Photographer: Simon Dawson / Bloomberg
Photographer: Simon Dawson / Bloomberg
Thog Saudi Arabia prices for its crude to be shipped to Asia and the US next month after OPEC + widened oil supply restrictions, signaling a tense corporate market.
World’s largest crude export is raising April prices for crude exports to the east to the highest levels from just before the Saudis released a short price and a year-long supply war back. After keeping prices to Asia at an eight-month high for the past two months, the price for light crude rose to its highest level since March 2020. It suggests that the Saudis will see growth in demand continues even after Thursday ‘s OPEC + decision to keep oil supply virtually unchanged sent Brent crude higher.
State oil producer Saudi Aramco increased prices for Arab Light crude for Asia, its largest regional market, by 40 cents per barrel to $ 1.40 more than the benchmark. Ahead of last week’s OPEC + surprise, Aramco was expected to keep prices for the rate unchanged, according to a Bloomberg study of traders and refiners.
Aramco raised all other prices to Asia, except for the heavy crude that remained unchanged.
The Petroleum Exporting Countries Group and friends entering Russia decided at a meeting on March 4 that they would stick to the product cuts that have fueled the market so far this year. Saudi pledges to extend a one-sided cut of 1 million barrels-a-day through at least April also helped spout the benchmark to nearly two years at nearly $ 70 per barrel.
The world’s largest exporter had aimed to boost production next month by unilaterally returning the 1 million barrels per day of oil they put down. for February and March. Instead, the kingdom took a more cautious approach, not threatening a decline in price gains if economies of pandemic slowed demand growth.
Russia was the only one with the decision, who will be able to add some production to it next month. Aramco is cutting prices to Europe, where its barrels largely track the cost of Russian Urals crude. Russia wants to increase production to prevent U.S. producers from importing and capturing market share.
However, the Saudis are not worried US coal shale oil producers will move to take advantage of higher prices right now and Aramco has raised most of its prices to the US
“‘Drill, baby, drill’ is gone forever,” Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said after an OPEC + meeting.
“Stone companies are now putting more emphasis on shares,” he told Bloomberg News in an interview following an OPEC + meeting. “They’ve had a lot of courage and now they’re listening to the shareholders’ call.”
Saudi Arabia’s price decision typically sets the tone for other suppliers in the Middle East, including Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, OPEC’s second and third largest producer.