Headlines
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Higher Indian GDP and Chinese manufacturing send crude price towards 80 $/b level
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Gold within 1200$/oz
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Economic results in big Asian countries support base metals
Brent and Distillates
On Monday crude futures were trading higher supported by India’s stronger-than-expected economic growth in the third quarter slightly decelerating by Dubai’s financial troubles and in spite of a revision in U.S. oil demand in September. Today, higher Chinese manufacturing supports crude price again.
The U.S. oil demand in September decreased to 18.362 mln.b/d, down 518 kb/d from an earlier estimate. Also September U.S. petroleum consumption was lowered 518 kb/d to 18.362 mln.b/d, EIA said in its monthly petroleum supply report.
PetroChina and Royal Dutch Shell have started joint exploration of a shale gas block in China in an effort to find alternative gas sources to meet China's rising demand, the China Petroleum Daily reported.
Signs of rising Chinese demand for oil may not be enough to offset weak demand in developed nations and trigger a price rally, the executive director of the International Energy Agency said. "We don't see much concern that an increase (in oil demand) in the non-OECD countries may create a problem for the market situation for next year," Nobuo Tanaka told Reuters in an interview.
Massive oversupply and weak heating demand will force European oil companies to run their refineries at low utilisation rates in December even after the completion of regular maintenance at some sites, a Reuters survey showed. Most oil traders, refinery officials and analysts expect refineries in Europe will run their plants at an average of about 80% of capacity next month.
Russia will introduce a zero duty on East Siberian crude oil exports from Dec. 1, a government source said, in a long-awaited move designed to spur investinvestment in virgin oilfields and revive stagnating output. Thirteen oilfields will be exempt from paying export duties, offering substantial savings for Russian oil firms operating in the region, including sector leader Rosneft.
Russia plans to invest up to 625 bln..$ over the next two decades to raise oil production by about 10% and a further 590 bln.$ to add at least 33% to its gas output, the Energy Ministry reported. The oil and gas investment, part of a 2000 bln.$ plus plan to develop the Russian energy sector by 2030, also envisages Asian markets taking a much larger share of Russia's exports as the country develops resource fields in Siberia and the Far East.
Iraq aims to install four new floating oil terminals and three new undersea oil pipelines that will boost export capacity to 8 mln.b/d day from a current 1.9 mln.b/d. The project should be completed on the new terminals and pipelines in the second half of 2011.
Vietnam's crude oil output rose 13.5 % in the first 11 months of this year from a year ago to 335 kb/d, the General Statistics Office said on Monday. On the contrary, crude production this month dropped an estimated 5.6 % from last November the government's statistics agency said in its monthly report, without giving reasons for the fall.
Austrian oil company OMV AG planned to cut its 2010 production target and could only grow beyond next year if it made acquisitions, as field declines, low gas demand and reduced investments take their toll. Head of exploration and production H. Langanger said OMV would not make its 350 kb of oil equivalent per day target.
