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Oil above $59 on Middle East, U.S. output, but IEA report caps gains

LONDON (Reuters) – Brent crude oil prices rose above $59 a barrel on Wednesday amid tension in the Middle East and signs of a dip in U.S. production, but gains were capped by a report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) indicating that supplies would take longer to tighten than previously expected. Front-month Brent crude futures LCOc1 were up 68 cents at $59.11 per barrel by 0903 GMT, while U.S. crude futures CLc1 were up 70 cents to $53.99. Prices were supported by uncertainty in the Middle East, where fighting continues in Yemen. A Saudi-led campaign of air strikes against Iran-allied Houthi rebels threatened to turn into a ground intervention after Egypt said it had discussed military manoeuvres with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf allies. In the United States, North Dakota’s February oil production fell 15,000 barrels per day (bpd) versus January, although the number of producing wells hit […]

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Brent crude hits 2015 highs as U.S. production slows

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Brent crude oil hit 2015 highs above $63 per barrel on Thursday after a rally of more than 5 percent the previous session, and analysts said more price rises were likely despite market oversupply. Front-month Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose above $63 a barrel for the first time this year on Thursday, although they had dipped back to $62.70 by 0654 GMT (2.54 a.m. ET). U.S. crude CLc1 was at $56.06 after hitting a 2015 high of $56.69 on Wednesday. The price rise means the U.S. oil market has firmed up into its best shape this year, as ebbing fears of an inventory overflow and renewed hedging in far-distance futures flattens the forward curve, a possible sign that a months-long rout might be over. "We turn extremely bullish on oil after yesterday’s 5 percent rally in crude prices," Singapore-based energy brokerage Phillips Futures said. "This whole […]

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IMF: Oil price adds to complex dynamics

Olivier Blanchard, Economic Counselor and Director at the Research Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), says low price of oil added a layer of complexity to global economic health. File Photo by UPI Photo/Kevin Dietsch. WASHINGTON, April 15 (UPI) — The decline in oil prices has led to a subdued outlook for the global economy, with importers like China and exporters alike feeling the impact, the IMF said. Brent crude oil prices traded Wednesday at around $59 per barrel, a substantial discount from the mid-June 2014 price above the $110 per barrel mark. The steep drop has impacted capital growth in countries that rely heavily on oil for government revenues. Olivier Blanchard , a research director at the International Monetary Fund, said the decline in the price of oil has redistributed real income for oil exporters and importers alike. "The early evidence suggests that, in oil importers, from […]

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IEA Says Oil Market Recovery Could Be Delayed

ENLARGE Iraqi oil workers at one of the al-Fakka Oil wells at the border between Iraq with Iran outside Amara, north of Basara and south of Baghdad. Iraq has contributed to an increase in OPEC output, the International Energy Agency says. Photo: European Pressphoto Agency The prospect of Iranian crude oil flooding the market and Saudi Arabia pumping at near-record levels could delay a recovery in an oil market slammed by a historic price collapse, the International Energy Agency said. The IEA, which tracks oil data for Western countries, and others have predicted that the world’s supply of oil would fall back in line with demand starting from the second half of this year, when U.S. producers are expected to begin cutting back production because of low prices. But the IEA said Wednesday that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, led by Saudi Arabia, had increased production to […]

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IEA forecasts higher 2015 global oil demand

In its April Oil Market Report, the International Energy Agency raised its forecast of 2015 global oil demand by 90,000 b/d to 93.6 million b/d, a gain of 1.1 million b/d on the year and a notable acceleration of the 700,000-b/d growth in 2014, as the global economy slowly gains momentum. Colder-than-year-earlier temperatures in most Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development economies in this year’s first quarter also accounted for part of the upward revision. Since bottoming out at a 5-year low of 270,000 b/d year-on-year in second-quarter 2014, global growth has steadily strengthened, rising to a one-and-a-half-year peak of 1.3 million b/d year-on-year in this year’s first quarter. Global supply rose an estimated 1 million b/d month-on-month in March to 95.2 million b/d. Supplies from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries surged to 31.02 million b/d in March, up 890,000 b/d on February, as top exporter Saudi […]

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Global Oil Supply And Demand

Summary The global oil supply/demand balance is improving. The recent IEA report likely underestimates demand. Supply is abundant and the s&d balance is loose, but armageddon is not coming. Global Oil Supply And Demand Early 2015 Review The International Energy Agency recently published its Oil Market Report. In this, it highlights and examines recent global oil supply and demand. It is a great time to take a look at and review the status of the global oil supply/demand balance and make some forecasts about what the rest of this year may look like. US crude oil stocks have been building steadily since the week of September 26, 2014, when they reached a recent low of approximately 356 million barrels. US oil in storage accelerated steeply in the first quarter of 2015. Last week, US oil stocks were 482 million barrels, a build of 124 million barrels in 6 months. […]

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Congress’s Role in Iran Nuclear Deal Shows Limits of Obama’s Power

Photo President Obama told female bloggers on Wednesday that he had fewer options left for using his power to bypass Congress. Credit Stephen Crowley/The New York Times CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In his assertions of executive power to advance his agenda in an era of gridlock, President Obama has been largely on offense. But his latest battle with Congress not only left him on defense, it actually broke the gridlock. Against him. Mr. Obama’s abrupt decision to sign a compromise version of legislation on Iran that he had previously vowed to veto was a bruising retreat in his larger campaign to act without Congress’s getting in his way. In this case, partisanship gave way to rare consensus on Capitol Hill: Both sides agreed that he was wrong to cut them out. The White House tried to make the best of the setback, arguing that the bipartisan bill was less objectionable […]

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Russia’s Lukoil sets up shop in Iran

Russian oil company Lukoil returns to Iran to await lifting of economic sanctions. Photo by Christopher Halloran/Shutterstock. MOSCOW, April 15 (UPI) — Russian oil company Lukoil said Wednesday it reopened its offices in Iran in anticipation of the full removal of economic sanctions. Lukoil started work in the Anaran reserve area near the border with Iraq in 2003, but was later forced to pull out of Iran as sanctions tightened. Lukoil Deputy Vice President Ravil Maganov said the company was back in Iran . "We look forward to participation in projects in Iran after the sanctions are fully removed", he said. "We are studying geological data on other projects as well." The director of Iran’s National Petroleum Co. last week said foreign investors "will flock to Iran" if a framework nuclear agreement brokered with the help of Russia and other members of the U.N. Security Council, plus Germany, takes […]

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Iran’s Rouhani says nuclear deal possible only if sanctions lifted: state TV

ANKARA (Reuters) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday Tehran will not accept a comprehensive nuclear deal with major powers if all sanctions imposed on Tehran were not lifted, state television reported. "If there is no end to sanctions, there will not be an agreement," Rouhani said in a televised speech in the northern city of Rasht. "The end of these negotiations and a signed deal must include a declaration of cancelling the oppressive sanctions on the great nation of Iran." Rouhani also said the U.S. Congress’ power to review a nuclear deal with Iran was a domestic matter. "We are in talks with the major powers and not with the Congress," he said, adding Iran wanted to end its isolation by having "constructive interaction with the world and not confrontation". (Additional reporting by Sam Wilkin in Dubai, Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Janet Lawrence )

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U.S. Iran bill makes nuclear deal harder, but not impossible

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A compromise allowing the U.S. Congress to vote on a nuclear deal with Tehran may prompt Iranian negotiators to drive a harder bargain, but does not drastically weaken President Barack Obama’s ability to deliver on a final agreement. For months Obama resisted attempts led by Republicans and some Democrats to open an agreement with Iran to congressional approval. On Tuesday he backed down in the face of mounting bipartisan support for the bill, which gives Congress at least 30 days to review a final deal during which time Obama would be unable to waive or suspend many U.S. sanctions. Negotiators for Iran and six major powers are trying to ensure Iran does not acquire an atomic bomb by securing an agreement by June 30 under which Iran would curb its nuclear program in exchange for relief from international sanctions. "If I were an Iranian negotiator, I […]

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