Good morning all. Brent edged up 2 cents, or 0.05%, to $44.45 a barrel at 3:49 am GMT, while WTI futures were up 9 cents, or 0.22%, at $41.60 a barrel.
Total products supplied, a proxy for demand, declined by more than 13% during the week ended on August 28 at 16.98 million b/d, US Energy Information Administration data released on September 2 showed. This was the largest weekly decline in demand since the week ended April 3 and pushed the weekly products supplied to the lowest since the week ended May 29. Likewise, total finished motor gasoline supplied fell 4.1% to 8.79 million barrels.
Notably, this sell-off came despite a sixth consecutive drawdown in US stockpiles. US commercial crude inventories declined 9.4 million barrels to 498.4 million barrels for the week ended August 28, while total motor gasoline inventories declined 4.3 million barrels to 234.9 million barrels, about 4% above the five-year average. Distillates inventories declined 1.7 million barrels to 177.5 million barrels, staying about 23% above the five-year average.
According to Vandana Hari, founder and CEO of oil consultancy firm Vanda Insights, “the drop in gasoline demand spooked the market, but weekly US consumption data is never a good gauge of trends and in this case all the more so, as it might have been skewed by the US Gulf storms causing disruptions in coastal Texas and Louisiana”.
In fact, the crude stock-draw may be attributable to a plunge in net imports, while gasoline and distillate stocks declined after a drop off in refinery run rates.
Still, low runs compounded by upcoming refinery maintenance and the end of summer driving season might put a ceiling to crude demand in the coming months.
Oil markets, however, drew some support from Iraq’s denial it was seeking exemption from OPEC+ oil cuts during the first quarter of next year.
Elsewhere, US private employers hiring fewer workers than expected for a second straight month in August, feeding fears that economic recovery was lagging.
MARKETS NEWS:
* Saudi Arabia Keeps Oil Deliveries to America All But Halted
* OPEC’s Core Keeps Oil Flows in Check Even as Output Curbs Eased
* Venezuela Sanctions Hinder Plans to Take Oil From Listing Tanker
* U.S. Jet Fuel Demand Recovering Faster Than Other Markets: Chart
* Nynas Buys Brazilian Crude After Halting Imports from Venezuela
* U.S. Gulf Shuts in 368,223 B/D or 19.9% Oil Production: BSEE
* U.S. Crude Stockpiles, Imports Slump Amid Storms: EIA Takeaways
* Sonangol Cuts Spot Offer Prices for Seven October Crude Cargoes
* Nigeria Oil Exports to Rise 9% M/m for 18 Key Grades in October
OTHER NEWS:
* Buyer of Schlumberger Frack Unit Now Eyes Lead Over Halliburton
* Aramco Delays Multibillion-Dollar LNG, Petrochemical Plans
* American Farmers Needing Lift Will Get It at Diesel Pump
PHYSICAL CRUDE NEWS:
* ASIA: China’s Record Haul Poised to End; WTI Golden Cross
* LATAM: Brazil Exports at 11-Month Low; Vasconia Tender
* US/CANADA: Exxon Shuts Canadian Kearl Oil-Sands Mine
* NSEA: Vitol Offers Forties, Brent Again; Flotta Program
* MED: Hellenic Tender; Russia Raised Output in August
* WAF: Nigeria to Raise Exports in Oct.; Sonangol Price Cut
OIL PRODUCT NEWS:
* U.S.: Gasoline Stockpiles Dip to December Level
* EUROPE: Spanish Fuel Demand Down; Exxon Plant Works
* ASIA: Chinese Refiners to Boost Sept. Fuel Exports
ECONOMIC EVENTS:
* Singapore onshore oil-product stockpile weekly data
* Insights Global weekly report on European refined product inventories in ARA region
ANALYST COLUMNS:
* Storms Cause Natural-Gas Supply to Pause as Demand Falls Less
OTHER FINANCIAL MARKETS:
* Global Stock Rally Builds in Asia; Dollar Edges Up: Markets Wrap
Singapore 380 INDIC
Oct20 258.00 / 260.00
Nov20 258.00 / 260.00
Dec20 258.50 / 260.50
Jan21 260.25 / 262.25
Feb21 262.00 / 264.00
Mar21 263.75 / 265.75
Q4-20 258.25 / 260.25
Q1-21 262.00 / 264.00
Q2-21 267.00 / 269.00
Q3-21 271.50 / 274.50
CAL21 269.00 / 272.00
Rotterdam 3.5% INDIC
Oct20 243.50 / 245.50
Nov20 242.00 / 244.00
Dec20 241.75 / 243.75
Jan21 243.25 / 245.25
Feb21 244.75 / 246.75
Mar21 246.25 / 248.25
Q4-20 242.50 / 244.50
Q1-21 244.75 / 246.75
Q2-21 249.00 / 251.00
Q3-21 251.75 / 254.75
CAL21 251.50 / 254.50
Singapore VLSFO 0.5% INDIC
Oct20 317.50 / 322.50
Nov20 319.75 / 324.75
Dec20 322.25 / 327.25
Jan21 325.00 / 330.00
Feb21 327.50 / 332.50
Mar21 330.00 / 335.00
Q4-20 319.75 / 324.75
Q1-21 327.50 / 332.50
Q2-21 334.00 / 340.00
Q3-21 339.75 / 345.75
CAL21 336.25 / 342.25
Rott VLSFO 0.5% INDIC
Oct20 293.75 / 298.75
Nov20 296.50 / 301.50
Dec20 299.25 / 304.25
Jan21 302.50 / 307.50
Feb21 305.75 / 310.75
Mar21 309.00 / 314.00
Q4-20 296.50 / 301.50
Q1-21 305.75 / 310.75
Q2-21 313.75 / 319.75
Q3-21 320.50 / 326.50
CAL21 316.00 / 322.00
Sing 10ppm GO INDIC
Oct20 47.46 / 47.60
Nov20 47.88 / 48.08
Dec20 48.34 / 48.54
Jan21 48.86 / 49.06
Feb21 49.44 / 49.64
Mar21 49.99 / 50.19
Q4-20 47.90 / 48.10
Q1-21 49.43 / 49.63
Q2-21 50.96 / 51.16
Q3-21 52.24 / 52.44
CAL21 51.31 / 51.71
ICE Gasoil 10ppm INDIC
Oct20 356.88 / 358.88
Nov20 361.77 / 363.77
Dec20 366.22 / 368.22
Jan21 371.30 / 373.30
Feb21 376.06 / 378.06
Mar21 379.55 / 381.55
Q4-20 361.60 / 363.60
Q1-21 375.64 / 377.64
Q2-21 385.56 / 387.56
Q3-21 398.81 / 400.81
CAL21 391.42 / 393.42