- Saudi production continues to decline
September 01, 2014
Saudi Arabia has cut OSPs to its Asian buyers for its main grades, for the second consecutive month in September.
Saudi production has been declining, and could fall further given the stiff competition from Iraq, Iran and Libya. Asian crude deman...
- Pressure mounting for Naphtha cracks and spot premiums
September 01, 2014
Premiums for naphtha spot cargoes into North Asia have fallen sharply, coinciding with the decline in naphtha cracks over the past month.
September loading cargoes changed hands for premiums of $8.50/mt in late July, but fell to $5/mt in the firs...
- Update on Russia's GDP
July 30, 2014
Russian GDP grew only 0.9% year-on-year during the first quarter, and actually declined frm the previous quarter.
The slowdown, anticipated earlier this year with the Russian authorities cutting their long-term economic outlook, has apparently st...
- Iran's nuclear talks extended
July 30, 2014
Nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 group (US, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany) failed to conclude by its original deadline of July 20 and is now extended for another 4 months until a final deadline of November 24. The parties are e...
- Increase in Chinese refinery runs y-on-y
July 30, 2014
Chinese refinery runs gained 5.6% y-on-y in June, to an average of 10.2 mmb/d (the second highest rate ever), even as crude imports registered a 10% growth y-on-y to 6.1 mmb/d over the same period.
Firstly, it seems that refiners have continued t...