Oil pares weekly advance as Libya seeks to boost crude supply
Oil pared its first weekly gain in a month as Libya sought to increase output and Russia ruled out military retaliation against Turkey for downing its jet near the Syrian border.
Oil pared its first weekly gain in a month as Libya sought to increase output and Russia ruled out military retaliation against Turkey for downing its jet near the Syrian border.
The latest provisional monthly energy statistics produced by the Department of Energy and Climate Change released today reveal energy production rose by a record 14.2% boosted by increased North Sea oil and gas production.
Oil jumped after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the border with Syria, fanning concern that conflict in the region may intensify.
Saudi Arabia’s government has reiterated its commitment to work with OPEC members and other producers to stabilise the oil market.
Oil extended its decline amid a broader commodity rout while Venezuela predicted crude prices may drop as low as the mid-$20s a barrel unless OPEC takes action to stabilize the market.
Oil traders are preparing for another downward turn in prices by March 2016, market data suggests.
Norwegian oil and gas investments will fall sharply in the next two years as low crude prices lead oil firms to cut back on spending, according to the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association, the industry's lobby group.
Geopolitical developments often have a major impact on oil prices since they can affect oil supply directly and since the threat of future supply disruptions can also build a risk premium into oil prices. As a notable example, in the early part of 2014, conflicts in Libya and Iraq led to temporary outages in their oil production, keeping world prices high, even as supply elsewhere in the world continued to ramp up. When production from those two countries came back on stream, that was an important trigger for the plunge in oil prices later in the year. Notice how much oil price spiked at the historical times of war.
The average price of crude sold by OPEC fell below $40 a barrel for the first time 2009, underscoring the financial cost of the group’s strategy to defend its market share.
The London market climbed despite the continuing fallout from the Paris terror attacks. The FTSE 100 Index was 29.8 points up to 6148.1, buoyed by a robust mining performance. UK and European markets had been knocked in the first hour of trading but recovered, with Germany’s DAX up 0.3% while France’s Cac 40 was flat.
Oil halted its decline near the lowest close in more than two months as investors weighed a global supply glut against heightened geopolitical tension after France bombed Syria in response to terrorist attacks in Paris.
Oil headed for a second weekly decline in New York, trading near its lowest level in two months, as US crude stockpiles rose three times more than forecast and the IEA said inventories in developed nations have reached a record.
The world crude oil price has been fluctuating around a low-level of $50/barrel for three months, now the prospect seems even gloomier as the International Energy Agency projects that 41% of the world market will continue to be taken by OPEC countries until 2020, with the rest of the world stagnating their production.
The safe money for oil traders is betting that Venezuela's plan to resurrect OPEC's old price band mechanism, attempting to set a $70 floor for the battered market, will be doomed from the start.
Sir Ian Wood’s analysis in 2012 that the North Sea industry was not viable when Brent crude was $114 a barrel and that drastic action had to be taken to save the industry is a sobering thought.
A global oil supply glut will persist through 2016 as demand growth slows from a five-year high and key OPEC producers maintain near-record output, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday, even as low prices curb supply outside OPEC.
Oil halted its decline after falling the most in six weeks as signs of rising demand in China countered an increase in OPEC production.
Supertankers hauling crude to China are contending with increased waiting times to unload as some on-land storage depots reach capacity amid an oil-buying binge by the world’s most populous nation.
Oil extended gains near $50 a barrel amid speculation an increase in demand will ease a global glut.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc is “puling out all the stops to safeguard” its dividend in a world where oil prices remain “lower for longer,” chief executive officer Ben Van Beurden said.
Engine maker Rolls-Royce said it will cut an extra 400 jobs from its marine division due to the continued slump in the price of oil.
$45 oil has been good to the Serica Energy chairman.
Oil rebounded to trade near $45 a barrel as investors weighed shrinking US stockpiles against signs of lower demand for crude as refineries shut for maintenance.
Aberdeen hotels have been hit by an 18% decrease in prices since the collapse in oil prices started biting at the start of the year, new figures have shown. The Hotel Price Index on room prices across the UK found that the Granite City was the hardest hit in the six months to June compared to the same period last year. Aberdeen room rates fell to an average paid per night of £97 from £118. Dundee followed with a rates decrease of 8% to £83 from £90 per night last year.
Oil edged further above $46 a barrel on Tuesday, supported by the prospect of lower US inventories and production although concern about weaker Asian demand kept prices in check.