from the Edge SINGAPORE (Sept 14): Oil prices dipped on Monday as weakening demand weighed on international markets, although U.S. futures received some support from reduced American drilling.
Front-month Brent crude futures were trading at US$47.86 a barrel at 0254 GMT, down 28 cents from their last close. U.S. crude futures dipped 5 cents to US$44.58 a barrel, supported by a slight fall in drilling activity.
The U.S. oil rig count fell by 10 to 652 last week, the second straight monthly drop, while the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday a cut in production from non-OPEC suppliers, especially the United States, would lead to a rebalancing of the market by next year.
Yet several banks said that the more immediate outlook could lead to lower prices.
"Both the supply and demand pictures look less favorable over the coming months... Outside the U.S., oil fundamentals appear to be slipping seasonally," Morgan Stanley said on Monday in a note to clients, adding that there was potential for some floating storage within the second half of 2015.
Macquarie noted that falling global auto sales in August were acting as a drag on demand.
"Sales were 1.0 percent lower YoY (year-on-year), slightly more than the 0.8 percent fall seen in July 2015," the bank said, although it added that sales could pick up towards the end of the year.
ANZ bank said high production in the Middle East remained a concern on the supply side.
In part due to oversupply and to defend market share, Middle East supplier Kuwait set its October Official Selling Price (OSP) for crude to Asia 60 cents lower than September at a discount of US$1.95 per barrel versus Oman/Dubai levels.
The low oil prices will undermine the financial health of energy firms, analysts said, which have already seen steep falls in their share prices since the downturn began in 2014.
"The trajectory of the (oil price) recovery keeps getting shallower as our expectations for OPEC output shifts up... The financial condition of the sector deteriorates further through 2017," Jefferies bank said.
"We are lowering our Brent oil price forecast by 9 percent to $54 per barrel (bbl) in 2015, 10 percent to $61/bbl in 2016 and 6 percent to $73/bbl in 2017," it added.
Malaysia's Najib delivers RM20 billion boost for stock market ReutersReuters – 19 minutes ago Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak speaks at the World Capital Market Symposium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, September 3, 2015. REUTERS/Olivia Harris View Photo Reuters - Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak speaks at the World Capital Market Symposium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, September 3, 2015. REUTERS/Olivia Harris KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Monday a government equity investment firm would be given 20 billion ringgit ($4.6 billion) to shore up the country's stock market, and announced other measures to support its slowing economy. Najib told a newsconference the equity investment firm, ValueCap, will invest in undervalued Malaysian companies. He also announced that the factory sector would be exempted from import dutires until the economy recovers, but did not specify which sectors would be affected. The ringgit currency has lost almost 19 percent of it value against the dollar so far this year, and Malaysia's stock market has retreated 8.95 percent this year. (Reporting by Trinna Leong and Yantoultra Ngui; writing by Praveen Menon; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
expect 20billion ringgit would be used up within a month as insider/foreign boys take this opportunity to sell at good price and ahjib has no choice but to push high for them to run....
20b is nothing if u look at recent china similar move. at best it can sustain the 1650 range rather than stabilised at higher level.
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kentg03
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Posted by kentg03 > 2015-09-14 10:54 | Report Abuse
http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Business-News/2015/09/14/PM-to-announce-economic-measures-today/?style=biz