OPEC Monthly Report
OPEC Monthly Report
You can read the OPEC Monthly Report here: http://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/publications/338.htm
Dan Steffens
Energy Prospectus Group
Energy Prospectus Group
Re: OPEC Monthly Report
On 11/10/217, Reuters reported the amount of oil stored on tankers around Singapore has dropped sharply in the last months, the latest indication that OPEC-led supply cuts are successfully tightening crude markets even as U.S. exports have soared. Shipping data in Thomson Reuters Eikon shows around 15 super-tankers are currently filled with oil in waters off Singapore and western Malaysia, storing around 30 million barrels of crude. That is half the number of ships in June and down from 40 tankers holding surplus oil from earlier in 2017.
On 11/8/2017, Bloomberg reported that oil investors discouraged by Wednesday’s data showing a retreat in Chinese crude imports can find cheer in another figure released in the world’s top buyer on the same day. The Asian nation raised the quota for use of overseas oil by non-state companies in 2018 according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce. The increase is equivalent to 1.1 million b/d. The firms that will use the allocation include private refiners, known as teapots, operating in the eastern province of Shandong. The boost in the quota signals that consumption in the world’s biggest energy user will continue to remain strong after purchases by teapots lifted the nation past the U.S. as the globe’s No. 1 crude buyer. While OPEC and its allies including Russia are seen prolonging their output curbs past March to clear a global glut, the sustainability of crude’s current rally will depend on whether there’s enough demand to soak up supply.
“China will remain the strongest demand driver for the world’s oil industry for the next couple of years,” said Li Li, the head of research at ICIS China. “The total imports by Chinese state-owned and private refiners and traders will increase remarkably with the expansion of existing capacity and starting-up of new plants.” Also on Wednesday, data from China’s General Administration of Customs showed crude imports in October retreated from near-record levels to the lowest in a year. Purchases declined because some of the teapots have used up their annual import allowances for 2017 already and were now shifting toward fuel oil, a residual product from refining, as an alternative feedstock, according to ICIS China.
On 11/9/2017, Reuters reported Saudi Arabia's crackdown on corruption has spread beyond its borders as regulators in the UAE asked banks for information about Saudi citizens detained in the investigation, a possible prelude to freezing their accounts. The UAE central bank has requested commercial banks and finance companies in the UAE to provide details of the accounts of 19 Saudis, commercial bankers told Reuters on Thursday, declining to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter. Almost all of the 19, including billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and former National Guard chief Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, are known to be among dozens of senior officials and businessmen detained in the corruption inquiry.
The UAE, particularly its most commercially prominent emirate Dubai, is one of the main places where wealthy Saudis park their money abroad. Huge amounts of money may be at stake. Corruption has over the years siphoned off $800 billion from Saudi state revenues, an official at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry has estimated; bankers believe much of it is held abroad, in countries including Switzerland and Britain.
On 11/8/2017, Bloomberg reported that oil investors discouraged by Wednesday’s data showing a retreat in Chinese crude imports can find cheer in another figure released in the world’s top buyer on the same day. The Asian nation raised the quota for use of overseas oil by non-state companies in 2018 according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce. The increase is equivalent to 1.1 million b/d. The firms that will use the allocation include private refiners, known as teapots, operating in the eastern province of Shandong. The boost in the quota signals that consumption in the world’s biggest energy user will continue to remain strong after purchases by teapots lifted the nation past the U.S. as the globe’s No. 1 crude buyer. While OPEC and its allies including Russia are seen prolonging their output curbs past March to clear a global glut, the sustainability of crude’s current rally will depend on whether there’s enough demand to soak up supply.
“China will remain the strongest demand driver for the world’s oil industry for the next couple of years,” said Li Li, the head of research at ICIS China. “The total imports by Chinese state-owned and private refiners and traders will increase remarkably with the expansion of existing capacity and starting-up of new plants.” Also on Wednesday, data from China’s General Administration of Customs showed crude imports in October retreated from near-record levels to the lowest in a year. Purchases declined because some of the teapots have used up their annual import allowances for 2017 already and were now shifting toward fuel oil, a residual product from refining, as an alternative feedstock, according to ICIS China.
On 11/9/2017, Reuters reported Saudi Arabia's crackdown on corruption has spread beyond its borders as regulators in the UAE asked banks for information about Saudi citizens detained in the investigation, a possible prelude to freezing their accounts. The UAE central bank has requested commercial banks and finance companies in the UAE to provide details of the accounts of 19 Saudis, commercial bankers told Reuters on Thursday, declining to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter. Almost all of the 19, including billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and former National Guard chief Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, are known to be among dozens of senior officials and businessmen detained in the corruption inquiry.
The UAE, particularly its most commercially prominent emirate Dubai, is one of the main places where wealthy Saudis park their money abroad. Huge amounts of money may be at stake. Corruption has over the years siphoned off $800 billion from Saudi state revenues, an official at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry has estimated; bankers believe much of it is held abroad, in countries including Switzerland and Britain.
Dan Steffens
Energy Prospectus Group
Energy Prospectus Group