Brent crude rose as much as nearly 1% to $54.09 a barrel, the highest since Feb. 26, 2020. It was at $53.87 a barrel at 0536 GMT after jumping 4.9% on Tuesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures reached $50.24 a barrel, also the highest since Feb. 26, before slipping to $50. The contract on Tuesday closed up 4.6%.
The API data also showed a 5.473 million-barrel and 7.136-million-barrel increase in US gasoline and distillate inventories, but amid the commotion of the OPEC+ meeting and the elections, these large builds in product inventories went mostly unnoticed.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, agreed on Tuesday to make additional, voluntary oil output cuts of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) in February and March, after a meeting with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major producers that form the group known as OPEC+. The reductions agreed by Saudi Arabia were included in a deal to persuade other producers in the OPEC+ group to hold output steady. With coronavirus infections spreading rapidly in many parts of the world producers are trying to support prices as demand takes a hit from new lockdowns being put in place. (Reuters)
The rise in crude can also be attributed to a draw in the latest US crude stock figures released overnight, and a weakening dollar. The output cuts from Saudi Arabia are not merely a goodwill gesture to other members of the OPEC group, but a pre-emptive measure as we bear witness to increasing lockdowns across the globe as new strains of the virus take hold.
INDEX: (MTD Estimates)
* Sing 380: 306.73
* Rott 3.5%: 289.13
* Sing 0.5%: 403.58
* Rott 0.5%: 375.50
MARKETS NEWS:
* Saudi Arabia’s Surprise Supply Cut Ripples Through Oil Markets
* Shale Will Need More Than $50 Oil and Saudi Cut to Boom Again
* Saudi Oil Output Cuts ‘New Year Gift’ for Market: Novak
* OPEC+ to Prepare Reports on Oil Output Outside Group, Novak Says
* China’s Energy Markets Tighten as Saudi Chokes Oil Supplies
* Mexico Maintains Production Quota After OPEC Meeting: Nahle
* Iraq’s SOMO Offers 1M Bbls Kirkuk Crude for 2H Jan.
* API Reports U.S. Crude Stockpiles Dropped 1.66M Bbl Last Week
* Alaska, West Canada Crude Exports to Asia Declined in December
* Libya to Ship 7.8M Bbl of Es Sider Crude in February: Program
* Middle East-China Crude Tanker Rates, Earnings Nudge Lower
* U.S. West Coast to Receive First India Jet Fuel Cargo Since 2015
* Canadian Heavy Crude Price Weakens as Fort Hills Resumes Output
OTHER NEWS:
* Hin Leong’s Court-Appointed Managers Seek to Freeze Lim’s Assets
* From Oil to LNG, Icy Blast of Winter Is Boosting Energy Prices
* Exxon Reveals Petroleum Product Emissions Data for First Time
* Trafigura Got $7 Billion Russian Loan for Arctic Oil Deal
OIL PRODUCT NEWS:
* U.S.: 2021 Retail Gasoline Heads Up Beside Crude
* EUROPE: ICE Gasoil Cracks Falls; Total Bids Diesel
* ASIA: Asian Refiners Skip Contracts; Floating Fuels
ECONOMIC DATA: (Times are London. )
* 3:30pm EIA weekly U.S. oil inventory report
ANALYST VIEWS/COLUMNS:
* Goldman Sees Surprise Saudi Cut as Signal Oil Demand to Weaken
* Gasoline in New York, Chicago Could Hit $3 This Year: Gas Buddy
* Vaccine Euphoria, OPEC+ Restraint Drives Sentiment, Not Reality: BI
* We’re Entering a New Era of Muted Oil Demand: Schork
OTHER FINANCIAL MARKETS:
* U.S. Futures, Treasuries Drop Amid Georgia Count: Markets Wrap
*Rotterdam 3.5% INDIC*
Feb21 301.50 / 303.50
Mar21 300.00 / 302.00
Apr21 298.00 / 300.00
May21 295.75 / 297.75
Jun21 293.25 / 295.25
Jul21 290.75 / 292.75
Q2-21 295.50 / 297.50
Q3-21 288.00 / 290.00
Q4-21 280.00 / 282.00
Q1-22 275.00 / 278.00
CAL22 263.00 / 269.00
*Singapore 380 INDIC*
Feb21 317.00 / 319.00
Mar21 316.00 / 318.00
Apr21 314.25 / 316.25
May21 312.00 / 314.00
Jun21 309.75 / 311.75
Jul21 307.50 / 309.50
Q2-21 312.00 / 314.00
Q3-21 305.25 / 307.25
Q4-21 298.75 / 300.75
Q1-22 295.00 / 298.00
CAL22 284.25 / 290.25
*Rott VLSFO 0.5% INDIC*
Feb21 383.50 / 388.50
Mar21 382.75 / 387.75
Apr21 382.25 / 387.25
May21 381.75 / 386.75
Jun21 381.25 / 386.25
Jul21 380.75 / 385.75
Q2-21 381.75 / 386.75
Q3-21 380.25 / 385.25
Q4-21 377.75 / 383.75
Q1-22 375.50 / 383.50
CAL22 377.00 / 385.00
*Singapore VLSFO 0.5% INDIC*
Feb21 407.75 / 412.75
Mar21 406.00 / 411.00
Apr21 405.25 / 410.25
May21 404.75 / 409.75
Jun21 404.25 / 409.25
Jul21 404.00 / 409.00
Q2-21 404.75 / 409.75
Q3-21 403.75 / 408.75
Q4-21 402.75 / 408.75
Q1-22 402.00 / 410.00
CAL22 388.25 / 396.25
*Sing 10ppm GO INDIC*
Feb21 58.55 / 58.69
Mar21 58.72 / 58.92
Apr21 58.88 / 59.08
May21 59.01 / 59.21
Jun21 59.14 / 59.34
Jul21 59.31 / 59.51
Q2-21 58.95 / 59.25
Q3-21 59.38 / 59.68
Q4-21 59.56 / 59.86
Q1-22 59.89 / 60.19
CAL22 59.15 / 59.55
*ICE Gasoil 10ppm INDIC*
Feb21 439.95 / 441.95
Mar21 439.95 / 441.95
Apr21 441.38 / 443.38
May21 442.36 / 444.36
Jun21 443.25 / 445.25
Jul21 444.42 / 446.42
Q2-21 442.35 / 444.35
Q3-21 445.46 / 447.46
Q4-21 448.10 / 450.10
Q1-22 448.00 / 450.00
CAL22 444.50 / 446.50
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