Oil prices have been struggling to rise beyond the low $50s per barrel. Not helped by news this week that Libya’s production has hit a 3-year high at 715,000 barrels per day — and is expected to rise to 1.25 million b/d by end-2017. And the crude market may have an even bigger problem looming. Russia. New data Monday showed that Russian oil producers achieved a major milestone in 2016. Becoming the largest supplier of crude to energy-hungry China. That came as Russian oil shipments to China rose 24% as compared to 2015 levels — to an average 1.05 million barrels per day for the year. Inching Russia ahead of go-to supplier Saudi Arabia, which saw its exports to China average 1.02 million b/d in 2016. That shift is happening as Saudi producers reportedly reigned in output under the OPEC production cuts agreed in late 2016. A move that […]