stockmanmy, big boys throw away because their cost of running small fields like anasuria and north sabah is too high. example: they use very expensive systems i.e sap for small or big operations and that is why it is not economical anymore for them - post $100 per barrel. hibiscus are small outfit and thus they run things lean and mean, bringing cost really low per barrel and even @ $50 per barrel they can still make a handsome profit.

it is like having a bently with 3993cc engine (because this is what they use everywhere in the world) going to the market to buy 1 pint of milk while using a honda city which fits the job and can do the same or even better.

this company thrive in this environment, with high US$ which oil is sold using, it is a win-win situation. this is a good research paper and definitely not a con man stock.

Good info from Public Bank:

http://klse.i3investor.com/blogs/PublicInvest/113343.jsp

1.15 coming

Surprised? The oil is real, why do you say it's a con man stock?

https://www.petrofac.com/en-gb/media/news/petrofac-evolves-its-duty-holder-model-in-support-of-new-north-sea-investment/

This is a producing oil company bro. Who conned you?

Ooo... got webcast... http://www.hibiscuspetroleum.com/investor-presentation

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/inventory-data-keeps-us-crude-prices-atop-50-a-barrel-2016-10-14

Inventory data keeps U.S. crude prices atop $50 a barrel

Published: Oct 14, 2016 12:52 a.m. ET

ByJenny W. Hsu

U.S.-oil prices remained steady in the $50 a barrel zone, after U.S. government data showed a decrease in fuel stockpiles last week while crude stocks grew.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in November CLZ6, +0.49%  traded at $50.71 a barrel, up $0.27, or 0.5%, in the Globex electronic session. December Brent crude LCOZ6, +0.19%  on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.05 to $52.08 a barrel.
Federal data showed that U.S. crude stockpiles swelled for the first time in six weeks, with 4.9 million barrels added to inventories in the week ended October 7, compared with the 900,000-barrel addition predicted by traders and analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal.

“It does look as though U.S. refiners are making some effort to bring stocks down toward more normal working levels.”

“From a crude oil perspective, this week’s numbers played out consistently with what we’ve seen over the past five years, with October being the time when refinery utilization troughs and crude oil stocks build,” said S&P Global Platts.

The EIA data showed refinery utilization dropped to 85.5%, from 88.3% the previous week, the first time below the five-year average since mid-July, due to seasonal maintenance.

But the market turned bullish on a larger-than-expected drawdown in gasoline inventory which dropped by 1.9 million barrels and distillate inventory which fell by 3.7 million barrels, on higher demand, said Societe Generale in a note.

“It does look as though U.S. refiners are making some effort to bring stocks down toward more normal working levels,” said Tim Evans, a Citi Futures analyst. “So far, at least, we don’t see the decline as necessarily related to a lack of available barrels in the global market.”

Beyond the U.S., analysts and traders are closely watching Russia’s stance on the production cut proposed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Russia’s production in September soared to a post-Soviet high to over 11 million barrels a day.
The 14-members bloc is expected to meet again in late November to iron out details of the proposed production cut. The aim is to cap total output under 33 million barrels a day, from the current 33.39 million barrels. However, without Russia’s participation, the pact runs the risk of flopping.

“Even if OPEC agrees to cut, it will take at least several months before the market becomes balanced or undersupplied. A lot can happen in that time,” said a Chinese fuel oil trader in Singapore, who is part of a large chorus of skeptics that think OPEC’s words might not translate into real action or that OPEC members may not be forthcoming even after an individual quota is imposed.

Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock for November RBX6, +0.23%   — the benchmark gasoline contract — fell 13 points to $1.4805 a gallon, while November diesel traded at $1.5827, 31 points higher.
ICE gasoil for November changed hands at $468.50 a metric ton, up $2.75 from Thursday’s settlement.

http://www.offshorepost.com/shell-sells-malaysia-offshore-fields/

Making small waves globally and big waves locally! Go Hibiscus!

Go and read up their success story on the Anasuria deal. Shell run their operations at very high cost because they are huge and that is why they need to let go of some of their smaller assets. Smaller companies like Hibiscus will fit well with these assets, operating it lean and mean and bringing down the operation cost to minimal. Cost for Anasuria is around USD23 per barrel!

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-prices-rise-on-opec-deal-1475115600

Oil Prices Climb After OPEC Deal
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries surprises the market by agreeing to a framework to cut production

By Alison Sider and Sarah McFarlane
Updated Sept. 29, 2016 3:49 p.m. ET

Oil prices continued to push higher Thursday, building on gains following the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ agreement to cut output.
OPEC’s surprise proposal prompted the largest daily gains in crude prices since April on Wednesday, and the rally continued Thursday even as many investors have raised questions about whether the cartel’s members would stand by an agreement and over how much sway the cartel now has over a market still brimming with crude from around the world.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 78 cents, or 1.66%, to $47.83 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 55 cents, or 1.13%, to $49.24 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange.

“Beyond a doubt, I think this is credible,” Carl Larry, director of oil and gas at Frost & Sullivan, said of the agreement OPEC struck Wednesday. “There is a lot of concern from the major suppliers that things are going to get worse—this cut is the tip of the iceberg.”

The group reached an understanding at a meeting Wednesday in Algeria that there was a need to scale back production. It agreed on a preliminary outline to cut its collective output to between 32.5 million barrels a day and 33 million barrels a day, down from the levels of 33.2 million barrels a day in August, national oil ministers said.

OPEC members will wait until the next official meeting in November to complete the details, including the quota for individual producers.
The agreement hasn’t been enough to break crude from the roughly $40-to-$50 range it has traded in for months, but some analysts said any sign of cooperation from the group is bullish for the oil market.

“You want to see actions not words, but quite frankly, over the last few years, they haven’t even been able to deliver words, so this is a step forward,” said John Saucer, vice president of research and analysis at Mobius Risk Group in Houston.

But many market participants remain skeptical. The plan doesn’t say how much each individual country will have to cut, and some countries will be treated differently—Iran, Libya and Nigeria are still trying to increase production by as much as 1.5 million barrels a day collectively. Even if the premise of the deal holds together until OPEC’s next meeting, ensuring that member countries stick to production quotas has been notoriously difficult.

“Let’s be honest—they’ve never adhered to any of these types of things,” said Tariq Zahir, managing member of Tyche Capital Advisors. “To continue going from there you really have to show me an agreement that Iran isn’t going to be producing like crazy.”
Another risk is that pushing up the prices via a production cut among low-cost producers would provide more incentive for oil drillers around the world to open their spigots even wider. The move would be “self-defeating,” said Goldman Sachs.

Global oil markets have been upended by the arrival of U.S. shale oil. More traditional source of oil, such as Russian oil fields, also have been pumping at full tilt as global producers battle for market share.

“OPEC has declared a truce on oil prices. But relentless improvements in shale technology will keep Saudis awake at night wondering if they have made the right choice,” analysts at BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research wrote Thursday.
More

Stocks Lifted by Prospective Deal
OPEC Agrees on Need to Cut Oil Output
Analysis: OPEC ‘Understanding’ Is Easily Misunderstood
Gasoline futures fell 1 cent, or 0.74%, to $1.4668 a gallon. Diesel futures gained 1.92 cents, or 1.29%, to $1.5102 a gallon.
—Jenny W. Hsu contributed to this article.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSaqAYVN6G8

Bloomberg interview :-)

https://www.energyvoice.com/marketinfo/117664/hibiscus-reports-profits-boost-north-sea/

Hibiscus reports profits boost from the North Sea


Written by Keith Findlay - 26/08/2016 7:54 am


North Sea newcomer Hibiscus Petroleum, of Malaysia, is toasting an huge markup in the value of its assets in the region.

Posting results for the year to June 30, 2016, Kuala Lumpur-based Hibiscus said its stake in the Anasuria cluster in the central North Sea was worth nearly £158million, as of March 1.

The figure, generated by RPS Energy Consultants, is 84% higher than indicated in a previous valuation by the same consultancy in September 2015.

Hibiscus said the new total was based on “areas of oil and gas production profiles, oil price projections and revised operating and capital cost estimates.”

Oil prices have rebounded this year following a sharp slump in late 2014, with Brent crude now fetching nearly $50 a barrel.

Hibiscus and fellow Malaysian company Ping Petroleum completed their acquisition of the Anasuria cluster from Shell and ExxonMobil earlier this year for close to £70million.

The move came after Shell announced it planned to sell “significant parts” of its UK operations, including interests in the Anasuria, Nelson and Sean assets.

Hibiscus was the first independent oil and gas company to list on the Malaysian stock exchange in 2011, after being founded in 2007.

Ping Petroleum is a privately-owned firm headquartered in the tax haven of Bermuda, with an office in Kuala Lumpur.

Hibiscus and Ping said at the time of their North Sea deal it reflected the support of the UK Government to encourage “smaller independents to invest and revive the North Sea basin.”

The Anasuria assets are located 110 miles east of Aberdeen and comprise wholly-owned interests in the Anasuria floating production, storage and offloading vessel and the Teal, Teal South and Guillemot A fields, plus a 38.65% interest in the Cook field, which is operated by Ithaca Energy.

In its latest annual results, Hibiscus – focused on exploration, development and production assets in the UK and Australia, said operating profits from Anasuria delivered a boost to business.

Pre-tax losses for 2015/16 came in at £10.6million, compared with £12.4million a year earlier, with revenue nearly 12 times higher at £15.8million.

http://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Forget-The-Pullbacks-Oil-To-See-Strong-Rebound-In-2017.html
Forget The Pullbacks – Oil To See Strong Rebound In 2017

By Dan Steffens - Aug 23, 2016, 4:54 PM CDT
Oil refinery

August 11, 2016 may be the point in this oil price cycle that will mark the start of a sustained increase in crude oil prices. That’s the date that the International Energy Agency (IEA) published their forecast that demand for oil would exceed supply in the 3rd quarter. Shortly after the IEA’s Oil Market Report came out, the Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said the kingdom would work with other producers to stabilize the market. Tighter supply and OPEC willing to curb production growth is a recipe for higher oil prices.


When you step back and look at a longer time frame, it is clear that this oil price cycle which started in mid-2014 bottomed in February, 2016. The most recent pullback that started late in June and continued through early August was just the speculators overplaying their hand on the short side. The brief dip below $40/bbl did not get close to the double-bottom in February.

Remember what oil prices have never moved up or down for an extended period of time. There are going to be many pullbacks along the way to a more sustainable price level for oil. I believe that oil will settle in the $60-$70 range sometime in 2017.

During the first week of August, 2016, speculative NYMEX short crude oil positions reached the highest level in at least the past ten years. Since the IEA report came out on August 11th the shorts have been scrambling to cover their positions.

Speculators Set the Price of Oil: The “paper” oil barrel market is much bigger than the “physical” oil market. In fact, the average volume of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil contracts traded daily on NYMEX and other commodity trading floors is over 100x the physical amount of WTI and over 5x the global oil supply. Speculators can often temporarily overwhelm the longer-term supply/demand fundamentals, creating volatile short-term oil price swings. When the speculators get blindsided by a change in what is happening in the “real world”, they can get burned.
Related: The Permian Pitfall: A Race To The Bottom For Tight Oil

• An historically high short position for WTI is bullish for oil prices
• A falling U.S.Dollar Index (DXY) also supports higher oil prices

During the first week of August, 2016, speculative NYMEX short crude oil positions reached the highest level in the past ten years. Since the IEA report came out on August 11th, the shorts have been scrambling to cover their positions. They are having a hard time finding enough sellers willing to cover their positions at these low prices.

The fundamentals also are supportive of oil prices. Non-OPEC production is on steady decline. Demand growth is relentless, moving up more than a million barrels per day each year. This world will soon be consuming over 100,000,000 barrels of hydrocarbon based liquid fuels and feedstock daily. It is clear that the price of oil cannot stay under $50/Bbl much longer because producers cannot meet demand at that price.

OPEC only supplies about 40% of global oil demand. Outside of the Middle East there are only a few places where oil reserves can be developed profitably for under $50/Bbl. We are lucky to have a few of them in the United States.

On August 16th the chief commodity strategist at Merrill Lynch moved the energy sector from “market weight” to “overweight”, predicting the sector would outperform the S&P 500. Merrill Lynch estimates that WTI will rally to $54/bbl by the end of this year and $69/bbl by next June.

“Oil production continues to fall as global oil & gas investment has been cut by nearly $300 Billion (41%) and active rig counts have dropped by 37% since the 2014 peak. In contrast, low oil prices continue to drive healthy demand growth, putting the oil market on pace to see its biggest supply-demand deficit since 2011. Our commodities team estimates that the (supply) deficit will last through 2020. Historically, when oil has rallied over 25%, Energy has outperformed the market nearly 90% of the time, with average outperformance of 11%.” – Merrill Lynch

During the first six months of this year, the energy sector’s weighting in the S&P 500 dipped below 7%. There has never been a time when the energy sector’s weight has dropped below 7% and the sector did not outperform the market over the subsequent three years. This is not going to be the first time it happens.

Up up and away! Go go OnG counters!

Sell when up buy when down hehehe... anything up will come down, up and down and up!

kikiki, aiyoyoyo kikikiki, I think hit raw nerve liow, let's see what happens in 1 weeks time lor. want to change statement or not bro, say lah another month or 2 or 1 year so people can forget what you say lor and give yourself time to heal the wound, 1 week very the fast leh... kikiki... how? aiyoyoyo 6 days left ler... want to count working days instead? aiyoyoyo kikiki. saya memang tarak belajar and not smart at all! you memang the smartest! kikiki

Kikiki don't run away in 1 weeks time ya bro, you say liow ya, aiyoyoyo how la dei, every time say 1 month this 2 months that never the happen... kikiki... must be hurting very deep inside ya? better go see doctor... kikiki...

It will be good from now on...

http://www.theedgemarkets.com/my/article/hibiscus-records-rm1895m-4q

Hibiscus records RM18.95m in 4Q

By Gho Chee Yuan / theedgemarkets.com | August 24, 2016 : 9:20 PM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 24): Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd posted a net profit of RM18.95 million or 1.61 sen per share in the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2016 (4QFY16), thanks to significant contribution to profits derived from the production and sales of oil and gas from the Anasuria Cluster in UK.

This was the second consecutive quarter, Hibiscus reported a profit. It posted a net profit of RM80.51 million in the immediate preceding quarter. This compares to a net loss of RM34.27 million or 3.72 sen per share in previous corresponding quarter 4QFY15.

Revenue for the quarter ballooned to RM50.58 million, from RM831,000 a year earlier.

No dividend was declared for the quarter.

Despite the stronger quarterly earnings, Hibiscus remained in the red in financial year ended June 30, 2016 (FY16), with net loss of RM59.96 million or 5.65 sen per share, as compared with RM65.25 million or 7.4 sen per share in FY15.

Annual revenue was skyrocketed to RM83.56 million, from RM7.1 million a year earlier, its filing on Bursa Malaysia revealed.

Commenting on this, Hibiscus Petroleum managing director Kenneth Pereira said the group is looking forward to a period of sustained revenues and recurring profitability from the Anasuria Cluster.

"Securing capital for growth in the current oil and gas market is difficult, so we are grateful to be generating positive cash flows. We hope that income from Anasuria and other fund raising initiatives will allow us to exploit further opportunities within the Anasuria Cluster and consider other new ventures," he said in a separate statement filed on stock exchange.

"We are very clear in our objective to safely operate, develop and grow our producing and development asset base in geopolitically safe jurisdictions," he added.

Shares in Hibiscus closed 0.5 sen or 2.56% higher at 20 sen today, giving it a market value of RM272.31 million.

http://midf.com.my/images/pdf/research-Report/Equity-Beat/2016/Hibiscus%20Petroleum-Cash%20Flow%20boost%20from%20Anasuria-MIDF-150716.pdf

Fair value of RM0.40

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/views/the-charm-is-back-in-crude-new-push-factor-can-lift-oil-prices-beyond-50/articleshow/53006346.cmsThe charm is back in crude: New push factor can lift oil prices beyond $50


By ECONOMICTIMES.COM | Jul 02, 2016, 09.42 AM IST
By Naveen Mathur

The tables have turned again for crude oil in the past fortnight, with WTI and Brent crude trading higher by 7.94 and 7.25 per cent, respectively, while MCX oil prices have risen 6.5 per cent in the same time frame.

Falling crude inventories, concerns over Brexit uncertainty, political crisis in Venezuela and strike of oil workers in Norway were the push factors for oil prices over the past fortnight.

Just after the Brexit vote was announced, crude oil prices have come off from the highs of the $50 mark (both Brent and WTI) and declined by around 6 per cent in intraday trade. The strike in Norway came as a major booster for oil prices in recent times, as workers at five fields operated by ExxonMobil, Engie and BASFBSE 0.50 % unit Wintershall threaten to walk off jobs from July 2 if wage talks fail.

That would cut Norway's output of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) by about seven per cent, data from Norway's Petroleum Directorate shows. Trade unions said 755 workers could walk out, potentially affecting work on seven fields that account for about 17 per cent of Norway's crude oil and natural gas output.

In Nigeria, output has recovered by 200,000-300,000 barrels per day (bpd) since mid-June after attacks on the oil infrastructure knocked out some 600,000 barrels of daily oil production to around 1.25 million bpd, which is down from 2 million bpd at the beginning of the year.

Oil output in Venezuela, which has the world's largest oil reserve, dropped to 2.37 million bpd in May, according to Opec data provided by Venezuela. That is down some 5 per cent from April and nearly 11 per cent from the average of 2015, piling more stress on the oil-dependent Venezuela as it wrestles with economic crisis. The drop could help erode the supply glut that has weighed on prices. Oil workers earn only a few dozen dollars a month at the black market rate due to the rapid tumble of th ..

Crude inventories in the US fell by 4.05 million barrels for the week ending June 24, declining for six consecutive weeks in a row. Overall, crude inventories are down by 16.82 million barrels since the last week of April, indicating that the refineries are processing more crude and the incremental demand is chipping in.

Outlook: The situation in Norway, Nigeria and Venezuela clearly proves the fact that the oversupply situation in oil markets needs a respite from somewhere by way of a cut in output.

The CFTC position indicates that for most part of 2016, hedge funds and money managers were net longs on crude oil. Although the recent positioning has fallen, indicating weakness, the overall cut in oil output by the countries discussed in the report will ensure that the $50 mark will be sustainably crossed in the near term.


This is a push factor for oil prices (CMP: $49.42 a barrel) to rise higher towards $56 in the international markets while MCX oil prices (CMP: Rs 3,345 a barrel) can move higher towards the Rs 3,900 a barrel mark.

Read more at:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/53006346.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/views/the-charm-is-back-in-crude-new-push-factor-can-lift-oil-prices-beyond-50/articleshow/53006346.cmsThe charm is back in crude: New push factor can lift oil prices beyond $50


By ECONOMICTIMES.COM | Jul 02, 2016, 09.42 AM IST
By Naveen Mathur

The tables have turned again for crude oil in the past fortnight, with WTI and Brent crude trading higher by 7.94 and 7.25 per cent, respectively, while MCX oil prices have risen 6.5 per cent in the same time frame.

Falling crude inventories, concerns over Brexit uncertainty, political crisis in Venezuela and strike of oil workers in Norway were the push factors for oil prices over the past fortnight.

Just after the Brexit vote was announced, crude oil prices have come off from the highs of the $50 mark (both Brent and WTI) and declined by around 6 per cent in intraday trade. The strike in Norway came as a major booster for oil prices in recent times, as workers at five fields operated by ExxonMobil, Engie and BASFBSE 0.50 % unit Wintershall threaten to walk off jobs from July 2 if wage talks fail.

That would cut Norway's output of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) by about seven per cent, data from Norway's Petroleum Directorate shows. Trade unions said 755 workers could walk out, potentially affecting work on seven fields that account for about 17 per cent of Norway's crude oil and natural gas output.

In Nigeria, output has recovered by 200,000-300,000 barrels per day (bpd) since mid-June after attacks on the oil infrastructure knocked out some 600,000 barrels of daily oil production to around 1.25 million bpd, which is down from 2 million bpd at the beginning of the year.

Oil output in Venezuela, which has the world's largest oil reserve, dropped to 2.37 million bpd in May, according to Opec data provided by Venezuela. That is down some 5 per cent from April and nearly 11 per cent from the average of 2015, piling more stress on the oil-dependent Venezuela as it wrestles with economic crisis. The drop could help erode the supply glut that has weighed on prices. Oil workers earn only a few dozen dollars a month at the black market rate due to the rapid tumble of th ..

Crude inventories in the US fell by 4.05 million barrels for the week ending June 24, declining for six consecutive weeks in a row. Overall, crude inventories are down by 16.82 million barrels since the last week of April, indicating that the refineries are processing more crude and the incremental demand is chipping in.

Outlook: The situation in Norway, Nigeria and Venezuela clearly proves the fact that the oversupply situation in oil markets needs a respite from somewhere by way of a cut in output.

The CFTC position indicates that for most part of 2016, hedge funds and money managers were net longs on crude oil. Although the recent positioning has fallen, indicating weakness, the overall cut in oil output by the countries discussed in the report will ensure that the $50 mark will be sustainably crossed in the near term.


This is a push factor for oil prices (CMP: $49.42 a barrel) to rise higher towards $56 in the international markets while MCX oil prices (CMP: Rs 3,345 a barrel) can move higher towards the Rs 3,900 a barrel mark.

Read more at:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/53006346.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

http://business.inquirer.net/211536/oil-prices-up-as-global-markets-recover-post-brexit

Oil prices up as global markets recover post-Brexit

SINGAPORE, Singapore—Oil prices rose in Asia on Friday as traders welcomed assurances from central bank around the world that they were ready to step in to prevent a global rout following Britain’s vote to leave the European Union.

After the initial shock of last Thursday’s referendum sparked a freefall, this week has seen a broad recovery across all asset classes.

South Korea has promised of $17 billion in stimulus and speculation swirls that Japan is planning to further loosen monetary policy while the chances of the US raising interest rates have all but evaporated.


On Thursday Bank of England boss Mark Carney hinted that policymakers were contemplating a cut in interest rates.

The news sent European and US shares soaring, and Asian traders picked up the baton Friday to press more gains.

The optimism filtered through to the oil market and at about 0315 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery was up 34 cents, or 0.70 percent, at $48.67.

Brent for September, a new contract, was up 39 cents, or 0.78 percent, at $50.10.

“Investors seemed to be finding reasons to be optimistic about the post-Brexit rebound,” said IG Markets analyst Bernard Aw.

CMC Markets analyst Margaret Yang said equity markets were on the rise partly because “the Bank of England hinted that more monetary stimulus is on the roadmap to battle the post-Brexit economic fallout.”

Oil market watchers said last week’s decline in US commercial inventories is also helping boost prices, but a sustained price rise will only come if producers make meaningful cuts in output.

The drop in US crude stockpiles “is certainly supportive” of prices, David Lennox, a resource analyst at Fat Prophets in Sydney, told Bloomberg News.

“But the market is waiting for real production cuts, and until that happens any strong rally in the oil price is just not going to be sustainable,” he said.

RELATED STORIES

http://business.inquirer.net/211536/oil-prices-up-as-global-markets-recover-post-brexit

Oil prices up as global markets recover post-Brexit

SINGAPORE, Singapore—Oil prices rose in Asia on Friday as traders welcomed assurances from central bank around the world that they were ready to step in to prevent a global rout following Britain’s vote to leave the European Union.

After the initial shock of last Thursday’s referendum sparked a freefall, this week has seen a broad recovery across all asset classes.

South Korea has promised of $17 billion in stimulus and speculation swirls that Japan is planning to further loosen monetary policy while the chances of the US raising interest rates have all but evaporated.


On Thursday Bank of England boss Mark Carney hinted that policymakers were contemplating a cut in interest rates.

The news sent European and US shares soaring, and Asian traders picked up the baton Friday to press more gains.

The optimism filtered through to the oil market and at about 0315 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery was up 34 cents, or 0.70 percent, at $48.67.

Brent for September, a new contract, was up 39 cents, or 0.78 percent, at $50.10.

“Investors seemed to be finding reasons to be optimistic about the post-Brexit rebound,” said IG Markets analyst Bernard Aw.

CMC Markets analyst Margaret Yang said equity markets were on the rise partly because “the Bank of England hinted that more monetary stimulus is on the roadmap to battle the post-Brexit economic fallout.”

Oil market watchers said last week’s decline in US commercial inventories is also helping boost prices, but a sustained price rise will only come if producers make meaningful cuts in output.

The drop in US crude stockpiles “is certainly supportive” of prices, David Lennox, a resource analyst at Fat Prophets in Sydney, told Bloomberg News.

“But the market is waiting for real production cuts, and until that happens any strong rally in the oil price is just not going to be sustainable,” he said.

RELATED STORIES

http://indianexpress.com/article/world/world-news/oil-and-commodities-prices-shrug-off-brexit-slump-2888251/

Oil and commodities shrug off Brexit slump

By: AFP | London | Published:July 1, 2016 8:47 pm

Oil Prices, Commodity prices, Brexit, North Sea Brent crude recovered, brexit shock absorbed,brexit oil and commodity prices, brexit impact on oil and commodity prices, oil and commodity prices,oil and commodity supply-demand balances, world news, latest news, International newsNorth Sea Brent crude recovered from a Monday low of USD 47.16 to hit USD 49.68 by Friday.
Oil approached the end of the week down slightly on a midweek rally but still well ahead of its lowest point after Britain’s shock vote to leave the European Union.

North Sea Brent crude recovered from a Monday low of USD 47.16 to hit USD 49.68 by Friday.

And West Texas Intermediate flirted with valuations as low as USD 46.33 during the week before reaching USD 48.15.

Analysts pointed to several factors for oil’s failure to recoup the pre-Brexit peak of just over USD 50.

Comments from Bank of England governor Mark Carney that pointed at a rate cut this summer took the pound and euro lower, striking a blow at demand for dollar-denominated oil.

And supplies are set to remain ample after clouds hovering over production in Nigeria and Norway cleared.

With Saudi Arabia continuing to fight a battle for market share by cutting prices, “odds are on further weakness next week,” according to analysts at PVM.

Industrial metals shrugged off losses they had taken through the week in the wake of the British referendum.

Copper reached a two-month high of USD 4,856 per tonne on Thursday, while aluminium reached its highest point since the start of May at USD 1,664.

Lead and nickel also flirted with three-month highs in Friday trading, helped by expectations that Asian central banks will do more to help economic growth, especially in China.

“Market participants clearly expect the Chinese authorities to take monetary policy measures in the next few weeks in a bid to minimise the negative impacts of the ‘Brexit’ on Asia’s largest economy,” said analysts at Commerzbank.

China is the largest consumer of industrial metals worldwide — with the UK accounting for less than 1 per cent of global consumption of most base metals.

“Any economic slowdown the UK may suffer will have a negligible impact on the supply-demand balances,” agreed analysts at UniCredit.

“Ultimately, the metals might end up being more affected by what Brexit has done to the dollar.”

Gold remained strong over the week, rallying from a slight dip on Monday — when holders cashed in on the precious metal’s spike after the British results emerged on June 24 –to reach USD 1,341 per ounce Friday.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/oil-prices-rise-tight-market-003931794.html

Wohoo! Steady OnG counters... go go go!

Oil edges up on pre-holiday buying, dollar weakness

Reuters

By Barani Krishnan


1. Oil up 3 percent as Brexit chances dim; gasoline surges too Reuters
2. Oil prices plunge 5 percent as Britain votes to leave EU Reuters
3. Oil down after small U.S. drawdown; seen choppy before Brexit vote Reuters
4. Oil up 4 percent on U.S. crude draw; Brent back above $50 Reuters
5. Oil Extends Gains in New York After Advancing Most in Two Months Bloomberg

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices were steady to slightly firmer on Friday, recovering from early losses, with traders citing potentially more bullish investor positioning for the second half of the year and after a weaker dollar that boosted most commodities.

The market also found some support after falling more than 3 percent on Thursday after traders booked profits at the end of the best quarter in seven years with a 25 percent hike in prices.

Volumes in key Brent and U.S. crude futures were significant for New York's morning trade despite the hesitation typically common before a long weekend. U.S. financial and commodity markets will be closed on Monday for the Independence Day holiday.

Brent futures (LCOc1) were up 7 cents at $49.78 a barrel by 11:13 a.m. EDT (1513 GMT). It was down 1 percent earlier, hitting a session low of $49.25.

U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures (CLc1) rose 5 cents to 48.38. Its intraday low was $47.90.

The rebound came as the dollar index fell 0.5 percent, making commodities denominated in the greenback more affordable for holders of the euro and other currencies.

For the week, Brent was on track to a gain of nearly 3 percent, helped largely by a return of fund buying in oil this week as financial markets moved on from the liquidation sparked by Britain's exit vote from the European Union. WTI was flat for the week.

"There is some pre-holiday market positioning for the second half that's going on," said David Thompson, executive vice-president at Washington-based commodities-focused broker Powerhouse. "People are also moving on from Brexit, accepting they have to deal with 'organised divorce' with Britain."


(Addition reporting by Karolin Schaps in LONDON and Henning Gloystein in SINGAPORE; Editing by William Hardy and Marguerita Choy)

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/oil-prices-rise-tight-market-003931794.html

Wohoo! Steady OnG counters... go go go!

Oil edges up on pre-holiday buying, dollar weakness

Reuters

By Barani Krishnan


1. Oil up 3 percent as Brexit chances dim; gasoline surges too Reuters
2. Oil prices plunge 5 percent as Britain votes to leave EU Reuters
3. Oil down after small U.S. drawdown; seen choppy before Brexit vote Reuters
4. Oil up 4 percent on U.S. crude draw; Brent back above $50 Reuters
5. Oil Extends Gains in New York After Advancing Most in Two Months Bloomberg

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices were steady to slightly firmer on Friday, recovering from early losses, with traders citing potentially more bullish investor positioning for the second half of the year and after a weaker dollar that boosted most commodities.

The market also found some support after falling more than 3 percent on Thursday after traders booked profits at the end of the best quarter in seven years with a 25 percent hike in prices.

Volumes in key Brent and U.S. crude futures were significant for New York's morning trade despite the hesitation typically common before a long weekend. U.S. financial and commodity markets will be closed on Monday for the Independence Day holiday.

Brent futures (LCOc1) were up 7 cents at $49.78 a barrel by 11:13 a.m. EDT (1513 GMT). It was down 1 percent earlier, hitting a session low of $49.25.

U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures (CLc1) rose 5 cents to 48.38. Its intraday low was $47.90.

The rebound came as the dollar index fell 0.5 percent, making commodities denominated in the greenback more affordable for holders of the euro and other currencies.

For the week, Brent was on track to a gain of nearly 3 percent, helped largely by a return of fund buying in oil this week as financial markets moved on from the liquidation sparked by Britain's exit vote from the European Union. WTI was flat for the week.

"There is some pre-holiday market positioning for the second half that's going on," said David Thompson, executive vice-president at Washington-based commodities-focused broker Powerhouse. "People are also moving on from Brexit, accepting they have to deal with 'organised divorce' with Britain."


(Addition reporting by Karolin Schaps in LONDON and Henning Gloystein in SINGAPORE; Editing by William Hardy and Marguerita Choy)

Aiyoyoyoyo you guys who keeps singing the same tune over and over Ki Ki Ki... alamak RM851m!

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/28/oil-prices-rise-on-norway-strike-threat-brexit-shock-fades.html

US oil ends 4.2 pct higher, at $49.88, on large crude drawdown
11 Hours Ago
Reuters



Oil prices jumped more than 3 percent on Wednesday after the U.S. government reported a larger-than-expected weekly drawdown in crude inventories, adding fuel to an existing rally on fading concerns over Britain's exit from the European Union.


The potential for an oil workers strike in Norway and a crisis in Venezuela's energy sector also added support to crude futures.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said crude stockpiles fell by 4.1 million barrels for the week to June 24, the sixth consecutive week of drawdowns.

That was more than the 2.4 million barrels expected by analysts in a Reuters poll. The American Petroleum Institute trade group had published a drawdown similar to the EIA's on Tuesday, boosting crude futures in post-settlement trade.

"The report is bullish with the large crude oil inventory decrease of over 4 million barrels," said John Kilduff, partner at New York energy hedge fund Again Capital. "The stepped-up demand by refiners and a plunge in imports helped create the decline."


U.S. crude oil production fell by 55,000 barrels a day, according to preliminary weekly figures. That follows a decline of 39,000 bpd in the previous week.

Brent crude futures were up $1.79, or 3.7 percent, at $50.38 per barrel.

U.S. crude settled $2.03 higher, or 4.24 percent, at $49.88 a barrel.

But the EIA also said gasoline stocks had an unseasonably large increase of 1.4 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations for a 58,000-barrel gain. On the East Coast, gasoline stockpiles rose to record levels.

That made some traders bearish on their longer-term view of oil.

"We firmly feel any rally will stall out near the $50 level, as we have seen unjustified gains in previous weeks for gasoline based on the build number we have now," said Tariq Zahir, crude spreads trader and managing partner at Tyche Capital Advisors in New York.

Standard Chartered said that it expected oil prices to return to $50 per barrel rapidly as the Brexit referendum's impact on demand was limited.


Despite that, some bankers said that the knock-on effects from Britain's EU exit vote could continue for some time.

"Uncertainty and volatility ... are both likely to be persistent for a long time to come," Citi analysts said.

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/28/oil-prices-rise-on-norway-strike-threat-brexit-shock-fades.html

US oil ends 4.2 pct higher, at $49.88, on large crude drawdown
11 Hours Ago
Reuters



Oil prices jumped more than 3 percent on Wednesday after the U.S. government reported a larger-than-expected weekly drawdown in crude inventories, adding fuel to an existing rally on fading concerns over Britain's exit from the European Union.


The potential for an oil workers strike in Norway and a crisis in Venezuela's energy sector also added support to crude futures.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said crude stockpiles fell by 4.1 million barrels for the week to June 24, the sixth consecutive week of drawdowns.

That was more than the 2.4 million barrels expected by analysts in a Reuters poll. The American Petroleum Institute trade group had published a drawdown similar to the EIA's on Tuesday, boosting crude futures in post-settlement trade.

"The report is bullish with the large crude oil inventory decrease of over 4 million barrels," said John Kilduff, partner at New York energy hedge fund Again Capital. "The stepped-up demand by refiners and a plunge in imports helped create the decline."


U.S. crude oil production fell by 55,000 barrels a day, according to preliminary weekly figures. That follows a decline of 39,000 bpd in the previous week.

Brent crude futures were up $1.79, or 3.7 percent, at $50.38 per barrel.

U.S. crude settled $2.03 higher, or 4.24 percent, at $49.88 a barrel.

But the EIA also said gasoline stocks had an unseasonably large increase of 1.4 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations for a 58,000-barrel gain. On the East Coast, gasoline stockpiles rose to record levels.

That made some traders bearish on their longer-term view of oil.

"We firmly feel any rally will stall out near the $50 level, as we have seen unjustified gains in previous weeks for gasoline based on the build number we have now," said Tariq Zahir, crude spreads trader and managing partner at Tyche Capital Advisors in New York.

Standard Chartered said that it expected oil prices to return to $50 per barrel rapidly as the Brexit referendum's impact on demand was limited.


Despite that, some bankers said that the knock-on effects from Britain's EU exit vote could continue for some time.

"Uncertainty and volatility ... are both likely to be persistent for a long time to come," Citi analysts said.

The market will be dictated by supply and demand, war is over... come on OnG!

http://qz.com/714622/saudi-arabia-has-declared-an-end-to-its-oil-war-with-the-us/

Saudi Arabia has declared an end to its oil war with the US

Two years after quietly declaring war on upstart US shale, Saudi Arabia says the need for the fighting is over. In remarks to journalists while on a US visit, Saudi Arabian energy minister Khalid Al-Falih said that the worldwide oil glut has vanished, signaling an end to Saudi Arabia’s strategy of flooding the global market with oil to try to put American drillers out of business.

The implication was that Saudi Arabia owned the victory. But a three-week-long resurgence of US oil drilling after 21 months of decline suggests that Saudi and the US fought to a draw.

Falih noted that a record volume of oil remains in storage in the US and around the world (paywall), built up during the glut, but once much of that is sold off, the kingdom can resume its traditional role managing supply and demand.

“We are out of it,” Falih told the Houston Chronicle. “The oversupply has disappeared. We just have to carry the overhang of inventory for a while until the system works it out.”

The Saudis went to war in June 2014 after a sudden, 4-million-barrel-a-day surge in US shale oil production. The surge put a fright into the Saudis, who saw that the OPEC oil cartel was losing its four-decade-long influence over global oil prices. As a result, they decided to sweat out US drillers by flooding the market and forcing down oil prices. When Russia did the same thing, oil prices plunged below $27 a barrel by March 2015, down from an average over $100 a barrel from 2011 through 2014. In trading today, Brent, the internationally traded benchmark, was as high as $50.90 a barrel.

Along the way, the low prices triggered a bloodbath in the US shale patch, and in Canada’s as well. As of the end of May, 81 North American oil companies had declared bankruptcy, according to Haynes Boone, an oil patch law firm. The number of oil rigs in service in the US plunged as well (see chart below), to 316 at the end of May from a peak of 1,609 in October 2014. Oil production plunged to about 8.7 million barrels a day from 9.7 million at the peak in March 2015. But the resurgence of oil prices has resulted in a turnaround in rigs, too–last week, they rose by nine to 337, according to Baker Hughes, an oil services firm.

With prices over $50 a barrel, more US oil appears to be on the way. In a June 22 note to clients, Citi analyst Edward Morse reported that there are nearly 2,000 drilled but not completely constructed wells in the US oil patch. With higher prices, companies will begin to bring those into production. Morse forecasts that those wells could bring US production back to 9 million barrels a day by this time next year.

Just three weeks ago, Falih had said that Saudi Arabia will not set price targets. But in his new remarks, he suggested that the kingdom would step in to manage supplies, which could add up to the same thing. “Despite the surplus in global oil production and lower prices, the focus of attention remains on countries such as Saudi Arabia which, due to its strategic importance, will be expected to balance supply and demand once market conditions recover,” he said.

“The question now is how fast you will work off the global inventory overhang,” Falih said. “That will remain to put a cap on the rate at which oil prices recover. We just have to wait for the second half of the year and next year to see how that works out.”

truthseeker bro, why you always say no fundamentals la and like what you said and said again "the end is near" but never happen. Say la the end is next month etc and then when it happens then we all believe la... you not very truthful la... heh heh, chill bro.

Heh heh... sharemarket is like that la, up down up down up la... what do you expect brutus121...

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-move-higher-on-optimism-over-brexit-vote-2016-06-23

Oil ends at 2-week high on bets U.K. will reject Brexit

Oil futures settled at their highest level in two weeks on Thursday, with U.S. prices reclaiming $50 a barrel as voters went to the polls in a landmark British referendum to determine whether the U.K. remains a member of the European Union.

Investors are wagering that support for the U.K. to stay in the 28-nation bloc has gained traction, stoking appetite for assets perceived as risky, including oil futures.


Time (EDT)Crude Oil - Electronic Aug 201623 Jun8:004:0024 Jun8:004:00


Oil prices also got an added boost late in the trading session from reports of a fresh pipeline attack in Nigeria. The attack “dashed hopes that a cease-fire will hold,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group.


“Nigerian oil production has been near multi-decade lows and a resumption of attacks make it difficult to believe that it will get better soon,” he said.

August West Texas Intermediate crude CLQ6, -3.37% rose 98 cents, or 2%, to settle at $50.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. August Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange LCOQ6, -3.40% rose $1.03, or 2.1%, to $50.91 a barrel.

Both WTI and Brent marked their highest futures settlements since June 9.

U.S. and European stock markets and oil prices found support after an Ipsos Mori poll showed the “remain” camp moving ahead in the Brexit debate. However, polls earlier this week have showed more Brits prefer to leave the EU.


The markets “largely stopped betting that an agreement to leave the EU would be reached following the death of British MP Jo Cox last week,” Troy Vincent, oil analyst at ClipperData told MarketWatch.

“This decline in risk has been reflected over the past week in various different forms of safe havens,” including Monday’s opening gap lower for the U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +2.05% and gold prices trading lower despite the weaker dollar, he said.


“However, if the most likely scenario plays out with the U.K. remaining in the EU, and you couple this with recent [U.S.] Federal Reserve remarks on a slower pace of [interest-]rate hikes, we should expect the dollar to continue to sell off,” he said. That “may give WTI the push it needs to approach the next major resistance level at $54.”

On the other hand, if the U.K. votes to leave the EU, the U.S. dollar “should rally significantly, which would likely be a catalyst for a correction lower in crude prices,” said Vincent.

Results from different constituencies will trickle in after midnight local time, or 7 p.m. Eastern Time, and the final outcome of the referendum will be announced early Friday.


Focus on the Brexit has temporarily diluted the effect of a disappointing reduction in the U.S. crude stockpiles last week.

Oil prices ended Thursday above $50 despite energy fundamentals being “less bullish” for weeks, Tyler Richey, co-editor of The 7:00’s Report, told MarketWatch. “The pace of U.S. production declines has slowed while rig counts have been seen rising, which suggests output declines in the lower 48 [states] will slow further or even begin to climb again in the coming weeks or months.”

Data from the Energy Information Administration showed U.S. crude inventories only decreased by 900,000 barrels last week—far less than the 5.2-million-barrel drawdown tipped by industry group American Petroleum Institute.

The EIA also reported an unexpected weekly rise in domestic gasoline inventories.

On Nymex Thursday, July gasoline RBN6, -2.13% climbed 1.5 cents, or 1%, to end at $1.604 a gallon, while July heating oil HON6, -2.51% added 1.6 cents, or 1.1%, to $1.521 a gallon.

Natural-gas futures eventually tracked their energy peers higher, following an earlier move lower in the wake of Thursday’s U.S. supplies data.

July natural gas NGN16, -1.04% finished at $2.698 per million British thermal units, up 2.1 cents, or 0.8%.

The EIA said supplies of the commodity rose 62 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 17. That was just above the average rise of 61 billion cubic feet expected by analysts polled by S&P Global Platts.

—Jenny W. Hsu contributed to this article.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-move-higher-on-optimism-over-brexit-vote-2016-06-23

Oil ends at 2-week high on bets U.K. will reject Brexit

Oil futures settled at their highest level in two weeks on Thursday, with U.S. prices reclaiming $50 a barrel as voters went to the polls in a landmark British referendum to determine whether the U.K. remains a member of the European Union.

Investors are wagering that support for the U.K. to stay in the 28-nation bloc has gained traction, stoking appetite for assets perceived as risky, including oil futures.


Time (EDT)Crude Oil - Electronic Aug 201623 Jun8:004:0024 Jun8:004:00


Oil prices also got an added boost late in the trading session from reports of a fresh pipeline attack in Nigeria. The attack “dashed hopes that a cease-fire will hold,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group.


“Nigerian oil production has been near multi-decade lows and a resumption of attacks make it difficult to believe that it will get better soon,” he said.

August West Texas Intermediate crude CLQ6, -3.37% rose 98 cents, or 2%, to settle at $50.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. August Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange LCOQ6, -3.40% rose $1.03, or 2.1%, to $50.91 a barrel.

Both WTI and Brent marked their highest futures settlements since June 9.

U.S. and European stock markets and oil prices found support after an Ipsos Mori poll showed the “remain” camp moving ahead in the Brexit debate. However, polls earlier this week have showed more Brits prefer to leave the EU.


The markets “largely stopped betting that an agreement to leave the EU would be reached following the death of British MP Jo Cox last week,” Troy Vincent, oil analyst at ClipperData told MarketWatch.

“This decline in risk has been reflected over the past week in various different forms of safe havens,” including Monday’s opening gap lower for the U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +2.05% and gold prices trading lower despite the weaker dollar, he said.


“However, if the most likely scenario plays out with the U.K. remaining in the EU, and you couple this with recent [U.S.] Federal Reserve remarks on a slower pace of [interest-]rate hikes, we should expect the dollar to continue to sell off,” he said. That “may give WTI the push it needs to approach the next major resistance level at $54.”

On the other hand, if the U.K. votes to leave the EU, the U.S. dollar “should rally significantly, which would likely be a catalyst for a correction lower in crude prices,” said Vincent.

Results from different constituencies will trickle in after midnight local time, or 7 p.m. Eastern Time, and the final outcome of the referendum will be announced early Friday.


Focus on the Brexit has temporarily diluted the effect of a disappointing reduction in the U.S. crude stockpiles last week.

Oil prices ended Thursday above $50 despite energy fundamentals being “less bullish” for weeks, Tyler Richey, co-editor of The 7:00’s Report, told MarketWatch. “The pace of U.S. production declines has slowed while rig counts have been seen rising, which suggests output declines in the lower 48 [states] will slow further or even begin to climb again in the coming weeks or months.”

Data from the Energy Information Administration showed U.S. crude inventories only decreased by 900,000 barrels last week—far less than the 5.2-million-barrel drawdown tipped by industry group American Petroleum Institute.

The EIA also reported an unexpected weekly rise in domestic gasoline inventories.

On Nymex Thursday, July gasoline RBN6, -2.13% climbed 1.5 cents, or 1%, to end at $1.604 a gallon, while July heating oil HON6, -2.51% added 1.6 cents, or 1.1%, to $1.521 a gallon.

Natural-gas futures eventually tracked their energy peers higher, following an earlier move lower in the wake of Thursday’s U.S. supplies data.

July natural gas NGN16, -1.04% finished at $2.698 per million British thermal units, up 2.1 cents, or 0.8%.

The EIA said supplies of the commodity rose 62 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 17. That was just above the average rise of 61 billion cubic feet expected by analysts polled by S&P Global Platts.

—Jenny W. Hsu contributed to this article.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) failed to agree to a clear oil-output strategy on Thursday as Iran insisted on raising production to regain market share lost during years of sanctions, which were lifted in January.

Analysts still took away positives from the meeting in Vienna, as Saudi Arabia showed restraint.


"We will be very gentle in our approach and make sure we don't shock the market in any way," Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told reporters.

As a result, Brent crude futures held above $50 per barrel on Friday, trading at $50.19 per barrel at 0647 GMT, up 15 cents from the last settlement and almost double January lows.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading up 9 cents at $49.26.

Despite the failure to agree on a joint policy, analysts said that rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia both got what they wanted from the meeting.

Holding after OPEC meet...

Woohoo...


Brent crude oil holds above $50 after OPEC meeting

SINGAPORE | By Henning Gloystein



Brent oil prices held around $50 a barrel on Friday following an OPEC meeting that failed to agree on output targets, but which was seen as supportive as Saudi Arabia pledged not to flood the market with more fuel.

Still rising...

Woohoo...


US oil rises 0.3 pct as crude drawdown offsets OPEC outcome
13 Hours Ago
Reuters



U.S. oil prices rose on Thursday after data showing a weekly drawdown in U.S. crude stockpiles helped crude markets recover from OPEC's decision not to set a ceiling for its production.

U.S. crude stockpiles fell 1.4 million barrels in the last week, the Energy Information Administration said. Although lower than a 2.5 million barrels forecast by analysts, the draw still helped crude futures erase early losses.

Gasoline stocks fell by 1.5 million barrels, while distillate fuel inventories were down 1.3 million barrels, EIA said. U.S. crude production also continued to tick down, according to EIA's preliminary weekly data.


International Brent crude oil futures were up 22 cents at $49.94 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled 16 cents higher, or 0.3 percent, at $49.17 a barrel.


Futures had fallen more than 1 percent on Thursday as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries ended a recent meeting without setting a ceiling for its production.


Market participants had followed OPEC's gathering in Vienna for signs of agreement on reviving the group's collective output quota proposed by Saudi Arabia or the introduction of individual member country quotas suggested by Iran.

But the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries failed to agree on these, with Saudi Arabia, its dominant voice, saying any "artificial ceiling" would be premature.


Still, Saudi Arabia promised not to flood the market with extra oil, suggesting a softening of its previous stance where it rigorously pumped to defend its share of a market oversupplied by an estimated 1.5 to 2 million barrels per day.

Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih told CNBC he believes the oil market is in good shape.

"The market is balancing. Trends are all good in terms of supply and demand. Prices have recovered somewhat and I believe they will continue to recover," he said.

Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh, who came to Vienna vowing not to concede any exports until its crude shipments reached pre-sanction levels, said he was generally happy with the outcome of the meeting. He also said he saw no signs that other member countries wanted to boost output steeply.



Opposition supporters clash with Venezuelan National Guards during a rally to demand a referendum to remove President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, May 11, 2016.
Saudi backfire: Crushing OPEC instead of USA


Some traders said crude prices were partly pressured by the dollar's recovery following comments by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi that were considered bearish for the euro.


Despite rising output by OPEC's Middle Eastern producers, the group's overall production has remained largely flat this year, currently standing at 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd), capped by disruptions especially in Nigeria, Libya and Venezuela.


Citi said it expected oil prices to rise above $50 per barrel "in the near future" as attacks on oil infrastructure in Nigeria, power outages and payment issues in Venezuela and chaos in Libya have reined in total OPEC production even as Iran has ramped up harder and faster than expected.

Because of supply disruptions elsewhere, the Middle East's low cost producers see little reason to restrain output as overall market conditions have improved significantly for them this year.

"Since January 20, oil prices have almost doubled from near $26 per barrel to almost $50 per barrel, at the same time total OPEC production has increased by around 100,000 bpd, despite heavy outages in Nigeria," BMI Research said.

"This indicates the strategy championed by Saudi Arabia... to let the oil market balance without intervening, is gradually playing out," it added.

Furthermore, we note from these preliminary results that in comparison to the literature publicly available prior to the acquisitions completion, that the Company has made significant progress to removing costs. What this has the combined effect of doing is increasing the net available cash flow its other businesses, which enables it to grow and provides it with flexibility, increases the value of the Anasuria all of which are good asset and prolongs its life, all of which create further value for the Company.

We continue to believe that the Anasuria asset will be the bedrock on which the Company can now start to build, and if further producing acquisitions can be made at these levels, then the Company will in a far stronger position than it went in exit this period of low prices then it entered it in. We believe investors should be pleased with the progress that management has made in this last quarter especially, and we are reiterating our BUY recommendation and MYR1.35 target price.

I_investor you meant this...


News Items

Hibiscus Petroleum* (OTCMKTS:HIPEF – MYR0.20) – (BUY – MYR1.35) – Anasuria Makes Instant Impact

Hmmm something wrong with i3investor, does not upload smoothly and suddenly appear 3 times... gogo OnG counters!

Global Oil Prices Settle Above $50 a Barrel

U.S. stockpile data demonstrates impact of a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies


By
Nicole Friedman

Updated June 2, 2016 3:19 p.m. ET


NEW YORK—Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, settled above $50 a barrel Thursday for the first time since November on continued declines in U.S. crude-oil inventories and production.

Prices fell early in the session as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries opted not to freeze production at its meeting in Vienna, but the market recovered after the U.S. data was released midmorning.

The U.S. data demonstrated how more than a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies are leading to shrinking supplies, helping reduce the oversupply of crude oil without intervention from OPEC.

Brent crude settled up 32 cents, or 0.6%, at $50.04 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe, the highest settlement since Nov. 3. U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled up 16 cents, or 0.3%, at $49.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.4 million barrels in the week ended May 27 as refiners ran at a slightly higher rate, the Energy Information Administration said Thursday.

“The demand numbers are strong” for gasoline and other fuels, said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk.

U.S. crude inventories have fallen in recent weeks but remain near the highest level in more than 80 years, a sign of the global glut of crude that has weighed on oil prices since mid-2014.

Domestic crude production also fell to the lowest weekly level since September 2014, the agency said, indicating that spending cuts by oil companies are taking their toll on output.

Also on Thursday, OPEC didn’t agree to implement a production ceiling at its meeting in Vienna.

.
OPEC’s decision not to cut production despite a global oversupply of crude was a key factor behind falling oil prices in late 2014. The group’s talk of freezing production in recent months helped buoy oil prices from 13-year lows reached earlier this year. But Iran has been unwilling to freeze production as it plans to continue increasing output now that international sanctions have been lifted.


Production outages in Canada, Nigeria and elsewhere have taken barrels off the market in recent weeks, boosting prices and removing some incentive for OPEC members to cut back.

“The worst is over for oil,” said Mohammed al-Sada, the energy minister for Qatar, at a news conference in Vienna.

U.S. prices have climbed more than 85% since falling in February to the lowest level since 2003.


“Despite the lack of an OPEC-led production freeze, the balance of the global oil market has changed in the last few months,” said Bob Minter, investment strategist at Aberdeen Asset Management, which manages $420.9 billion, in a statement. “All member countries are still highly motivated to maximize production for political and economic reasons.”

Mohammed Barkindo of Nigeria, who was named as OPEC’s new secretary-general, said the group may come up with an output ceiling in the future but is comfortable without one for now.

Gasoline futures settled up 1.93 cents, or 1.2%, at $1.6346 a gallon. Diesel futures rose 0.99 cent, or 0.7%, at $1.5088 a gallon.


—Benoit Faucon, Summer Said and Georgi Kantchev contributed to this article.

Write to Nicole Friedman at nicole.friedman@wsj.com

Global Oil Prices Settle Above $50 a Barrel

U.S. stockpile data demonstrates impact of a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies


By
Nicole Friedman

Updated June 2, 2016 3:19 p.m. ET


NEW YORK—Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, settled above $50 a barrel Thursday for the first time since November on continued declines in U.S. crude-oil inventories and production.

Prices fell early in the session as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries opted not to freeze production at its meeting in Vienna, but the market recovered after the U.S. data was released midmorning.

The U.S. data demonstrated how more than a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies are leading to shrinking supplies, helping reduce the oversupply of crude oil without intervention from OPEC.

Brent crude settled up 32 cents, or 0.6%, at $50.04 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe, the highest settlement since Nov. 3. U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled up 16 cents, or 0.3%, at $49.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.4 million barrels in the week ended May 27 as refiners ran at a slightly higher rate, the Energy Information Administration said Thursday.

“The demand numbers are strong” for gasoline and other fuels, said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk.

U.S. crude inventories have fallen in recent weeks but remain near the highest level in more than 80 years, a sign of the global glut of crude that has weighed on oil prices since mid-2014.

Domestic crude production also fell to the lowest weekly level since September 2014, the agency said, indicating that spending cuts by oil companies are taking their toll on output.

Also on Thursday, OPEC didn’t agree to implement a production ceiling at its meeting in Vienna.

.
OPEC’s decision not to cut production despite a global oversupply of crude was a key factor behind falling oil prices in late 2014. The group’s talk of freezing production in recent months helped buoy oil prices from 13-year lows reached earlier this year. But Iran has been unwilling to freeze production as it plans to continue increasing output now that international sanctions have been lifted.


Production outages in Canada, Nigeria and elsewhere have taken barrels off the market in recent weeks, boosting prices and removing some incentive for OPEC members to cut back.

“The worst is over for oil,” said Mohammed al-Sada, the energy minister for Qatar, at a news conference in Vienna.

U.S. prices have climbed more than 85% since falling in February to the lowest level since 2003.


“Despite the lack of an OPEC-led production freeze, the balance of the global oil market has changed in the last few months,” said Bob Minter, investment strategist at Aberdeen Asset Management, which manages $420.9 billion, in a statement. “All member countries are still highly motivated to maximize production for political and economic reasons.”

Mohammed Barkindo of Nigeria, who was named as OPEC’s new secretary-general, said the group may come up with an output ceiling in the future but is comfortable without one for now.

Gasoline futures settled up 1.93 cents, or 1.2%, at $1.6346 a gallon. Diesel futures rose 0.99 cent, or 0.7%, at $1.5088 a gallon.


—Benoit Faucon, Summer Said and Georgi Kantchev contributed to this article.

Write to Nicole Friedman at nicole.friedman@wsj.com

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-prices-flat-ahead-of-opec-meeting-1464843323

Global Oil Prices Settle Above $50 a Barrel

U.S. stockpile data demonstrates impact of a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies

By
Nicole Friedman

Updated June 2, 2016 3:19 p.m. ET

NEW YORK—Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, settled above $50 a barrel Thursday for the first time since November on continued declines in U.S. crude-oil inventories and production.

Prices fell early in the session as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries opted not to freeze production at its meeting in Vienna, but the market recovered after the U.S. data was released midmorning.

The U.S. data demonstrated how more than a year of low prices and spending cutbacks by oil companies are leading to shrinking supplies, helping reduce the oversupply of crude oil without intervention from OPEC.

Brent crude settled up 32 cents, or 0.6%, at $50.04 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe, the highest settlement since Nov. 3. U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled up 16 cents, or 0.3%, at $49.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 1.4 million barrels in the week ended May 27 as refiners ran at a slightly higher rate, the Energy Information Administration said Thursday.

“The demand numbers are strong” for gasoline and other fuels, said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk.

U.S. crude inventories have fallen in recent weeks but remain near the highest level in more than 80 years, a sign of the global glut of crude that has weighed on oil prices since mid-2014.

Domestic crude production also fell to the lowest weekly level since September 2014, the agency said, indicating that spending cuts by oil companies are taking their toll on output.

Also on Thursday, OPEC didn’t agree to implement a production ceiling at its meeting in Vienna.

.
OPEC’s decision not to cut production despite a global oversupply of crude was a key factor behind falling oil prices in late 2014. The group’s talk of freezing production in recent months helped buoy oil prices from 13-year lows reached earlier this year. But Iran has been unwilling to freeze production as it plans to continue increasing output now that international sanctions have been lifted.

Production outages in Canada, Nigeria and elsewhere have taken barrels off the market in recent weeks, boosting prices and removing some incentive for OPEC members to cut back.

“The worst is over for oil,” said Mohammed al-Sada, the energy minister for Qatar, at a news conference in Vienna.

U.S. prices have climbed more than 85% since falling in February to the lowest level since 2003.



“Despite the lack of an OPEC-led production freeze, the balance of the global oil market has changed in the last few months,” said Bob Minter, investment strategist at Aberdeen Asset Management, which manages $420.9 billion, in a statement. “All member countries are still highly motivated to maximize production for political and economic reasons.”

Mohammed Barkindo of Nigeria, who was named as OPEC’s new secretary-general, said the group may come up with an output ceiling in the future but is comfortable without one for now.

Gasoline futures settled up 1.93 cents, or 1.2%, at $1.6346 a gallon. Diesel futures rose 0.99 cent, or 0.7%, at $1.5088 a gallon.


—Benoit Faucon, Summer Said and Georgi Kantchev contributed to this article.

Write to Nicole Friedman at nicole.friedman@wsj.com

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-prices-flat-ahead-of-opec-meeting-1464843323

Woohoo... Oil prices above $50 already...

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-idUSKCN0YO03R

Oil prices tread water ahead of OPEC meeting

SINGAPORE | By Henning Gloystein


Oil prices were steady on Thursday on mixed market signals ahead of an OPEC meeting in Vienna, which analysts said was not expected to result in restrictions on crude output.

International Brent crude oil futures were trading at $49.77 per barrel at 0200 GMT, up 5 cents from their last settlement, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 9 cents at $48.92 a barrel.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is set for another showdown between rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran when it meets on Thursday in the Austrian capital, with Riyadh trying to revive coordinated action or a formal oil output target, but Tehran refusing to cooperate.

"An output ceiling has no benefit to us," said Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh as the country tries to recoup lost market share following the lifting of sanctions against it in January.

Despite rising output by OPEC's Middle Eastern producers, the group's overall production has remained largely flat this year, currently standing at 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd), capped by disruptions especially in Nigeria, Libya and Venezuela.

Citi said it expected oil prices to rise above $50 per barrel "in the near future" as attacks on oil infrastructure in Nigeria, power outages and payment issues in Venezuela and chaos in Libya have reined in total OPEC production even as Iran has ramped up harder and faster than expected.

Because of supply disruptions elsewhere, the Middle East's low cost producers see little reason to restrain output as overall market conditions have improved significantly for them this year.

"Since January 20, oil prices have almost doubled from near $26 per barrel to almost $50 per barrel, at the same time total OPEC production has increased by around 100,000 bpd, despite heavy outages in Nigeria," BMI Research said.

"This indicates the strategy championed by Saudi Arabia... to let the oil market balance without intervening, is gradually playing out," it added.

Despite this, producers are eyeing China's slowing ecoomy with concern.

"OPEC members will be keeping a close eye on China, with the low factory activity data that has been released possibly signalling a diminishing demand for oil – something that could do real damage to oil prices," said Mihir Kapadia, CEO at Sun Global Investments.

Car sales in China, an important gauge for gasoline and, by extension, crude oil demand, have also falllen by almost a quarter since the end of 2015 to 2.12 million new registered vehicles in April.


(Reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by Joseph Radford and Richard Pullin)

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-down-as-opec-meeting-sparks-caution-1464779990

Oil Prices Rebound on OPEC Hope

Cartel’s talk of revisiting a cap on production cancels out selloff from healthy supplies
.

By
Timothy Puko

Updated June 1, 2016 5:11 p.m. ET


Oil prices rebounded from losses after delegates from the world’s largest oil exporters renewed hope that they may revisit a cap on production.

Saudi Arabia is now considering backing a ceiling on production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries when the group meets Thursday in Vienna, delegates said. That might remove what analysts consider one of the biggest threats to oil’s recent rally. Saudi Arabia is likely one of only a few major oil producers in the world that can keep ramping up the record production that has caused a world-wide oil glut.


Related

OPEC Members Revive Idea of Production Ceiling June 1, 2016
Oil Prices Tilt Lower; Focus Stays on U.S. Crude Data and OPEC Meeting May 31, 2016
Oil Retreats at $50 Again May 31, 2016
UAE Energy Minister Says Oil Market Correcting Upward May 31, 2016
‘Teapot’ Refineries Shore Up China’s Demand for Crude May 30, 2016
.
The move would be a surprise to many and an about-face from April when the kingdom backed out of a preliminary deal between OPEC leaders and Russia to cap production. Expectations have been so low for Thursday’s meeting that even the slightest bit of hope, though largely remote and speculative, is enough to halt a four-day selloff of U.S. oil, brokers said.

“I don’t know why they’re being optimistic,” said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk. “But if you cap OPEC production at the same time you’re capping domestic production here at home, then you’re racing into [a] shortage.”

U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled down 9 cents, or 0.2%, at $49.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the global benchmark, lost 17 cents, or 0.3%, to $49.72 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.


Both markets had traded in losing territory for much of the day, with U.S. oil bottoming out at a one-week intraday low of $47.75 a barrel. With the late-afternoon headlines out of Vienna, oil flipped into positive territory after settlement, with U.S. oil recently trading up 6 cents, or 0.1%, at $49.16 a barrel.

The oil market has clung to near the $50 market all week. A round number such as that is often a popular point for automatic buy and sell orders, as well as options strike prices, leading many traders to pause and reassess. Volatility in the oil futures market recently dropped to its lowest point since 2014, and some expect prices to hover in this area for several sessions before making a drastic move one way or the other.

Many are still warning that move could be lower. U.S. oil settled up 87% from its 13-year low settlement in February, its sharpest rally in seven years even though many of the improvements in the oversupplied market may be temporary.


Recent wildfires in Canada had shut down nearly 1 million barrels of oil production, or about 40% of Canada’s daily crude output, but that factor doesn’t appear to have seriously reduced the oversupply in the U.S. market, said Scott Shelton, broker at ICAP PLC. Suncor Energy, that country’s largest crude-oil producer, said it expects to restart production by the end of the week.

Stockpiles at Cushing, Okla., fell by about 650,000 barrels from May 20 to May 24, but only 31,000 barrels from May 24 to 27, data provider Genscape Inc. said on Tuesday, according to a person who had reviewed the report. The U.S. Energy Information Administration has scheduled the release of its own weekly update on U.S. stockpiles for Thursday at 11 a.m. EDT.

Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expect a 2.8-million barrel decrease in U.S. crude stocks for the week ended May 27. But that volume isn’t much outside normal for this time of year, when demand from summer driving season often leads crude inventories to shrink.


OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. ENLARGE
OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. Photo: AFP/Getty Images
.
“The market seems to have found the supply pretty easily to offset Canada,” Mr. Shelton said. “And that’s making people wonder what the next catalyst is for upside.”

Analysts are also expecting decreases in gasoline and distillates stocks of 600,000 barrels each, and both of those commodities rallied into gains before crude. Gasoline futures settled up 9.3 cents, or 4.1%, at $2.381 a gallon. Diesel futures gained 0.18 cent, or 0.1%, to $1.4989 a gallon.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-down-as-opec-meeting-sparks-caution-1464779990

Oil Prices Rebound on OPEC Hope

Cartel’s talk of revisiting a cap on production cancels out selloff from healthy supplies
.

By
Timothy Puko

Updated June 1, 2016 5:11 p.m. ET


Oil prices rebounded from losses after delegates from the world’s largest oil exporters renewed hope that they may revisit a cap on production.

Saudi Arabia is now considering backing a ceiling on production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries when the group meets Thursday in Vienna, delegates said. That might remove what analysts consider one of the biggest threats to oil’s recent rally. Saudi Arabia is likely one of only a few major oil producers in the world that can keep ramping up the record production that has caused a world-wide oil glut.


Related

OPEC Members Revive Idea of Production Ceiling June 1, 2016
Oil Prices Tilt Lower; Focus Stays on U.S. Crude Data and OPEC Meeting May 31, 2016
Oil Retreats at $50 Again May 31, 2016
UAE Energy Minister Says Oil Market Correcting Upward May 31, 2016
‘Teapot’ Refineries Shore Up China’s Demand for Crude May 30, 2016
.
The move would be a surprise to many and an about-face from April when the kingdom backed out of a preliminary deal between OPEC leaders and Russia to cap production. Expectations have been so low for Thursday’s meeting that even the slightest bit of hope, though largely remote and speculative, is enough to halt a four-day selloff of U.S. oil, brokers said.

“I don’t know why they’re being optimistic,” said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk. “But if you cap OPEC production at the same time you’re capping domestic production here at home, then you’re racing into [a] shortage.”

U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled down 9 cents, or 0.2%, at $49.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the global benchmark, lost 17 cents, or 0.3%, to $49.72 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.


Both markets had traded in losing territory for much of the day, with U.S. oil bottoming out at a one-week intraday low of $47.75 a barrel. With the late-afternoon headlines out of Vienna, oil flipped into positive territory after settlement, with U.S. oil recently trading up 6 cents, or 0.1%, at $49.16 a barrel.

The oil market has clung to near the $50 market all week. A round number such as that is often a popular point for automatic buy and sell orders, as well as options strike prices, leading many traders to pause and reassess. Volatility in the oil futures market recently dropped to its lowest point since 2014, and some expect prices to hover in this area for several sessions before making a drastic move one way or the other.

Many are still warning that move could be lower. U.S. oil settled up 87% from its 13-year low settlement in February, its sharpest rally in seven years even though many of the improvements in the oversupplied market may be temporary.


Recent wildfires in Canada had shut down nearly 1 million barrels of oil production, or about 40% of Canada’s daily crude output, but that factor doesn’t appear to have seriously reduced the oversupply in the U.S. market, said Scott Shelton, broker at ICAP PLC. Suncor Energy, that country’s largest crude-oil producer, said it expects to restart production by the end of the week.

Stockpiles at Cushing, Okla., fell by about 650,000 barrels from May 20 to May 24, but only 31,000 barrels from May 24 to 27, data provider Genscape Inc. said on Tuesday, according to a person who had reviewed the report. The U.S. Energy Information Administration has scheduled the release of its own weekly update on U.S. stockpiles for Thursday at 11 a.m. EDT.

Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expect a 2.8-million barrel decrease in U.S. crude stocks for the week ended May 27. But that volume isn’t much outside normal for this time of year, when demand from summer driving season often leads crude inventories to shrink.


OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. ENLARGE
OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. Photo: AFP/Getty Images
.
“The market seems to have found the supply pretty easily to offset Canada,” Mr. Shelton said. “And that’s making people wonder what the next catalyst is for upside.”

Analysts are also expecting decreases in gasoline and distillates stocks of 600,000 barrels each, and both of those commodities rallied into gains before crude. Gasoline futures settled up 9.3 cents, or 4.1%, at $2.381 a gallon. Diesel futures gained 0.18 cent, or 0.1%, to $1.4989 a gallon.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-down-as-opec-meeting-sparks-caution-1464779990

Oil Prices Rebound on OPEC Hope

Cartel’s talk of revisiting a cap on production cancels out selloff from healthy supplies
.

By
Timothy Puko

Updated June 1, 2016 5:11 p.m. ET


Oil prices rebounded from losses after delegates from the world’s largest oil exporters renewed hope that they may revisit a cap on production.

Saudi Arabia is now considering backing a ceiling on production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries when the group meets Thursday in Vienna, delegates said. That might remove what analysts consider one of the biggest threats to oil’s recent rally. Saudi Arabia is likely one of only a few major oil producers in the world that can keep ramping up the record production that has caused a world-wide oil glut.


Related

OPEC Members Revive Idea of Production Ceiling June 1, 2016
Oil Prices Tilt Lower; Focus Stays on U.S. Crude Data and OPEC Meeting May 31, 2016
Oil Retreats at $50 Again May 31, 2016
UAE Energy Minister Says Oil Market Correcting Upward May 31, 2016
‘Teapot’ Refineries Shore Up China’s Demand for Crude May 30, 2016
.
The move would be a surprise to many and an about-face from April when the kingdom backed out of a preliminary deal between OPEC leaders and Russia to cap production. Expectations have been so low for Thursday’s meeting that even the slightest bit of hope, though largely remote and speculative, is enough to halt a four-day selloff of U.S. oil, brokers said.

“I don’t know why they’re being optimistic,” said Donald Morton, senior vice president at Herbert J. Sims & Co., who runs an energy-trading desk. “But if you cap OPEC production at the same time you’re capping domestic production here at home, then you’re racing into [a] shortage.”

U.S. crude oil for July delivery settled down 9 cents, or 0.2%, at $49.01 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the global benchmark, lost 17 cents, or 0.3%, to $49.72 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.


Both markets had traded in losing territory for much of the day, with U.S. oil bottoming out at a one-week intraday low of $47.75 a barrel. With the late-afternoon headlines out of Vienna, oil flipped into positive territory after settlement, with U.S. oil recently trading up 6 cents, or 0.1%, at $49.16 a barrel.

The oil market has clung to near the $50 market all week. A round number such as that is often a popular point for automatic buy and sell orders, as well as options strike prices, leading many traders to pause and reassess. Volatility in the oil futures market recently dropped to its lowest point since 2014, and some expect prices to hover in this area for several sessions before making a drastic move one way or the other.

Many are still warning that move could be lower. U.S. oil settled up 87% from its 13-year low settlement in February, its sharpest rally in seven years even though many of the improvements in the oversupplied market may be temporary.


Recent wildfires in Canada had shut down nearly 1 million barrels of oil production, or about 40% of Canada’s daily crude output, but that factor doesn’t appear to have seriously reduced the oversupply in the U.S. market, said Scott Shelton, broker at ICAP PLC. Suncor Energy, that country’s largest crude-oil producer, said it expects to restart production by the end of the week.

Stockpiles at Cushing, Okla., fell by about 650,000 barrels from May 20 to May 24, but only 31,000 barrels from May 24 to 27, data provider Genscape Inc. said on Tuesday, according to a person who had reviewed the report. The U.S. Energy Information Administration has scheduled the release of its own weekly update on U.S. stockpiles for Thursday at 11 a.m. EDT.

Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expect a 2.8-million barrel decrease in U.S. crude stocks for the week ended May 27. But that volume isn’t much outside normal for this time of year, when demand from summer driving season often leads crude inventories to shrink.


OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. ENLARGE
OPEC delegates are seen during their meeting in Vienna in December 2015. The delegates meet again on Thursday, and their conference has helped push down brent crude and WTI prices. Photo: AFP/Getty Images
.
“The market seems to have found the supply pretty easily to offset Canada,” Mr. Shelton said. “And that’s making people wonder what the next catalyst is for upside.”

Analysts are also expecting decreases in gasoline and distillates stocks of 600,000 barrels each, and both of those commodities rallied into gains before crude. Gasoline futures settled up 9.3 cents, or 4.1%, at $2.381 a gallon. Diesel futures gained 0.18 cent, or 0.1%, to $1.4989 a gallon.

Time to buy in some more... push all OnG counters...

In the United States, there are now virtually no wells that are profitable to drill.

The impact of Western sanctions caused Iranian production to drop by about one million barrels a day in recent years and blocked Iran from importing the latest Western oil field technology and equipment. With sanctions now being lifted, the Iranian oil industry is opening the taps on production.

Who loses?


For starters, oil-producing countries and states. Venezuela, Nigeria, Ecuador, Brazil and Russia are just a few petrostates that are suffering economic and perhaps even political turbulence.