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Iraq Is New Schism for Saudis in Strained Alliance With West

Few goods transit the desert border between the Middle East ’s two biggest oil producers, and Saudi authorities have built a fence to help ensure that political instability in Iraq doesn’t cross over either. Dysfunctional ties between the countries have come into focus as a wave of violence sweeps Iraq, turning it into another arena where Saudi interests are diverging from those of the U.S. Fighting is centered in Anbar province, bordering Saudi Arabia , where Sunni fighters with ties to al-Qaeda are rebelling against the Shiite-led government of Nouri al-Maliki, which is supported by Iran . The Saudi view is that Maliki is “aggravating the feelings of marginalization that some Iraqi Sunnis have long complained about, and that are at the root of the current violence,” said Fahad Nazer, a political analyst at Vienna, Virginia-based intelligence analyst JTG, and a former analyst for the Saudi embassy in Washington […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Lebanon's prospects of gas bonanza slip further away

With Lebanon’s long-awaited auction for exploration licenses in the gas-rich eastern Mediterranean postponed because there’s no functioning government, time may be running out for the tiny country to grasp what’s likely to be its last chance for economic salvation as it slips once more toward sectarian savagery. Energy Minister Gebran Bassil was supposed to hold the auction Friday, but on Wednesday he postponed it — for the third time — to April 10 after political rivalries blocked the caretaker government of Prime Minister Najib Mikati from convening to endorse two decrees authorizing the bidding for exploration blocks in Lebanon’s maritime exclusive economic zone. "This is the last time bidding will be delayed," he declared, although it was far from clear why that should be so since the political paralysis gripping the nation is not expected to end anytime soon. Bassil insisted the auction […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Lebanon’s prospects of gas bonanza slip further away

With Lebanon’s long-awaited auction for exploration licenses in the gas-rich eastern Mediterranean postponed because there’s no functioning government, time may be running out for the tiny country to grasp what’s likely to be its last chance for economic salvation as it slips once more toward sectarian savagery. Energy Minister Gebran Bassil was supposed to hold the auction Friday, but on Wednesday he postponed it — for the third time — to April 10 after political rivalries blocked the caretaker government of Prime Minister Najib Mikati from convening to endorse two decrees authorizing the bidding for exploration blocks in Lebanon’s maritime exclusive economic zone. "This is the last time bidding will be delayed," he declared, although it was far from clear why that should be so since the political paralysis gripping the nation is not expected to end anytime soon. Bassil insisted the auction […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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South Sudanese Forces Press Rebel-Held Oil Hub

President Salva Kiir’s government held out a possible pardon to rival Riek Machar if he agrees to end nearly a month of fighting, as South Sudanese troops advanced toward the strategic rebel-held town of Bentiu on Thursday. Military and aid officials said Mr. Kiir’s troops were within five miles of Bentiu, a hub for South Sudan’s 240,000-barrel-a-day oil industry now held by forces loyal to Mr. Machar, a former vice president. The intensifying battle in South Sudan’s oil-rich north has raised fears that fighting could disrupt an industry that funds nearly all of the country’s federal budget and foreign exchange. South Sudan is sub-Saharan Africa’s No. 3 producer behind Angola and Nigeria. "Our forces are closing in on Bentiu from two fronts," said military spokesman Philip Aguer. Meanwhile, talks between envoys for Messrs. Kiir and Machar in Ethiopia showed signs of stalling. The rebel delegation rejected the government’s offer […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Maliki fights fire in Iraq he helped to start

It is back to a wounded past in Fallujah, the city ravaged by an American offensive in 2004, one of the bloodiest episodes in the US occupation of Iraq. The Sunni Muslim town fell into the grip of jihadis earlier this week and has since been threatened with a large-scale assault by the Shia Muslim-led government in Baghdad. Yet today, just as much as a decade ago, Fallujah embodies a broader political problem of Sunni disenfranchisement that is unlikely to be resolved by tanks and artillery. True, Fallujah takes pride in its reputation as a rebellious town, its population still holding on to memories of the US offensive, which was launched after the murder of American contractors whose bodies were viciously left hanging on a bridge. Even as its people rebuilt the schools and hospitals, a few buildings were deliberately left in ruins to remind them of the assault, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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New Estimate Sharply Raises Death Toll in South Sudan

As fighting continued to rage across South Sudan on Thursday, a new estimate raised the death toll in the conflict significantly and a senior American official questioned the government’s insistence that a coup attempt was responsible for setting off the violence and instability there. The International Crisis Group said Thursday that the number of dead from the conflict was close to 10,000 people, a major increase from earlier estimates by the United Nations. “Given the intensity of fighting in over 30 different locations in the past three weeks, we are looking at a death toll approaching 10,000,” said Casie Copeland, an analyst at the International Crisis Group , a research and advocacy institution. The United Nations special representative for South […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China Crude Imports Rise to Record High as New Refineries Start

China , which consumes more oil than any country except the U.S., boosted net crude imports to a record high last month as two new refineries prepared to begin operations. Overseas crude purchases exceeded exports by 26.69 million metric tons in December, according to data released on the website of the General Administration of Customs in Beijing today. That’s equivalent to 6.31 million barrels a day, 13 percent higher than the same month in 2012 and up 10 percent from November. China, the first country to sell more than 20 million vehicles domestically in a year, is increasing crude purchases to meet fuel demand. Imports last year climbed by 4 percent to 282 million tons, or about 5.66 million barrels a day, the data show. The U.S. shipped about 7.81 million barrels a day in 2013, according to the Energy Information Administration. “Two new refineries that are scheduled to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China December export growth slows, rosier 2014 seen

China’s export growth slowed more than expected in December due to a higher comparison base a year earlier and a clamp-down on speculative activities disguised as export deals, missing the official target on foreign trade. But the outlook for 2014 is expected to be brighter as global demand picks up, giving more wiggle room for Chinese leaders to push through reforms to balance the world’s second-largest economy. "Exports weakened dramatically, but were close to the consensus. The data is positive for China and Asia sentiment as it alleviates concerns that China is slowing too sharply," said Dariusz Kowalczyk, a senior economist and strategist for Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong. Exports rose 4.3 percent in December from a year earlier, the Customs Administration said on Friday, slowing from 12.7 percent in November and compared to market expectations of 4.9 percent. Imports rose 8.3 percent, quickening from […]

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China's December exports slow, imports accelerate

China’s export growth slowed in December while imports accelerated, possibly helping to temper fears of a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy. Exports rose 4.3 percent to $207.7 billion, slowing from November’s 12.7 percent expansion, trade data showed Friday. Imports rose 8.3 percent to $182.1 billion, up from the previous month’s 7.6 percent. Stronger exports might be a sign China’s domestic demand is relatively strong despite concerns a modest economic recovery is weakening. China’s economic growth tumbled to a two-decade low of 7.5 percent in the second quarter. It rebounded to 7.8 percent the following quarter but private sector analysts say that recovery is likely to fade. The Cabinet in late December said it expected 2013’s full-year growth to be 7.6 percent, which would be the weakest performance since 1999. "Our country’s economic development was stable overall," said a government spokesman, Zheng Yuesheng, at […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China’s December exports slow, imports accelerate

China’s export growth slowed in December while imports accelerated, possibly helping to temper fears of a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy. Exports rose 4.3 percent to $207.7 billion, slowing from November’s 12.7 percent expansion, trade data showed Friday. Imports rose 8.3 percent to $182.1 billion, up from the previous month’s 7.6 percent. Stronger exports might be a sign China’s domestic demand is relatively strong despite concerns a modest economic recovery is weakening. China’s economic growth tumbled to a two-decade low of 7.5 percent in the second quarter. It rebounded to 7.8 percent the following quarter but private sector analysts say that recovery is likely to fade. The Cabinet in late December said it expected 2013’s full-year growth to be 7.6 percent, which would be the weakest performance since 1999. "Our country’s economic development was stable overall," said a government spokesman, Zheng Yuesheng, at […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple