Oil Through the Looking Glass 11/6/20

Unexpected Build? The EIA confirmed a large build in US crude stocks at 5.7 mil bbls to put stocks at 538.1 million bbls, a historic record excluding US strategic reserves. This was caused largely by the shipments from Saudi Arabia from the price war pumping in March and April. We knew from the effects on …

Oil Through the Looking Glass 10/6/20

The Glut is Back Those of you who have been watching your crude ticker this morning will see many red numbers on the screen. The reason for this has been the switch of sentiment to concerns about oversupply. We have had reports late last night that the API have predicted a large build in US …

Oil Through the Looking Glass 9/6/20

Easing of Lockdown Bounce Prices have been rising on Brent as hopes that the global recovery post covid-19 will be swift, bringing normal levels of demand back to the battered market. Prices on front month futures have pushed above the $40 level and even Goldman Sachs has raised its oil price forecasts to a $40.40 …

#moreforless – the new shape of OPEC+ supply policy?

Saudi Arabia’s extra voluntary oil-production cut, which came on top of the OPEC+ supply curbs, will cease at the end of this month as demand recovers.   Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the kingdom’s additional reductions, which amounted to about 1.2 million barrels a day including contributions from its closest allies in the …

OPEC+ squabbles as family tensions mount

Saudi Arabia and Russia, two of the world’s biggest oil producers, have agreed to support extending into July the 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd) in supply cuts backed in April by the OPEC+ group.   But they failed to agree to holding the meeting to discuss it with the wider group. The alliance that’s …

Oil market gripped by ‘rabid optimism’ for now at least

OPEC and its allies edged closer to a consensus on extending production cuts to prop up the oil market, even as wrangling continued for a third day about whether to bring forward their next meeting.   Russia and several other OPEC+ nations favor extending the group’s current output curbs by one month.   The cuts …

Full tankers idle as crude scrapes back near $40

Brent crude has doubled in price over the past six weeks, pulling back from the brink and the unprecedented step of negative US crude prices.   With Chinese demand increasing and the new OPEC cuts, with the extension being discussed right now, it has managed to drag prices to just under $40.   Meanwhile queues …

Oil tries again to accentuate the positives

Brent crude was unchanged at $37.84 a barrel, in the first day of trading in the contract with August as the front month. WTI crude futures for July delivery were at $35.53 a barrel, up 4 cents, or 0.1%, by 0629 GMT. OPEC+ is set to discuss a short extension of its current output cuts, …

Ship Shape: The End of the Road

One thing that has confusingly held true up to now was that, against all the trends of many other commodities and market, iron ore kept on rising. It has been the black sheep of the markets, standing there, teeth gritted, weathering the storm that had swept away many other markets. However, just as other markets …

Shine, shine, shine a light

We are seeing History in the making when the European Union announced its 750 billion- Euro ($824 billion) recovery package, aimed at boosting economic growth and creating a swathe of new jobs. The capital injection will have global financial markets breathing a sigh of relief, following the commitment from China at the Two Session to …