Category: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian equities fell the most in the Arab world after the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged sparked concern over global growth and the price of oil capped its third week of losses. The Tadawul All Share Index fell 1.4 percent to 7,365.98 at the close in Riyadh to the lowest in almost a month, marking a seventh day of losses. Banks made up four out of the top five contributors to the decline. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index advanced 0.6 percent. The Bloomberg GCC 200 Index, made up of the biggest and most liquid shares in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, slipped 0.6 percent. That sent the premium it commands over MSCI Inc.’s emerging markets index on a future price-to-earnings basis to the lowest in almost five months. The spread between forward 12-month P/E for the BGCC 200 Index and MSCI EM Index is the […]

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Saudi Arabia’s crude stockpiles rose to a record in July after exports by the world’s biggest oil shipper declined for the third time in four months. Commercial petroleum stockpiles increased to 320 million barrels, the highest since at least 2002, from 319.5 million barrels in June, according to data Sunday on the website of the Riyadh-based Joint Organisations Data Initiative. Crude exports slumped 1.2 percent to 7.28 million barrels a day after hitting a record 7.9 million barrels in March. Overseas shipments declined every month since then except in June. Brent crude oil prices have slumped 17 percent this year as Saudi Arabia led the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in boosting production to keep market share amid a global supply glut. The failure of producers to cut output fast enough may require prices to fall near $20 a barrel to clear the surplus, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimates. […]

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Amin al-Nasser was named president and chief executive officer of Saudi Arabian Oil Co., as part of leadership changes at the world’s biggest oil company overseen by a newly created supreme council headed by the Saudi king’s son. Saudi Aramco’s supreme council also approved a five-year business plan at its first meeting in Jeddah, the state-owned company said in an e-mailed statement Thursday. Nasser in May was named interim CEO, replacing Khalid Al-Falih who became chairman and health minister. The supreme council is restructuring the Dhahran-based company which is no longer under the oil ministry. Nasser is also on the board, below the supreme council. “More appointments are expected,” Mohamed Ramady, a London-based independent analyst and former professor of economics at King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran, said by e-mail. “Many senior vice presidents retired lately and no replacements have been announced so far.” Saudi Aramco […]

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Look out world—China’s not the only central bank in town selling its currency reserves to cope with a tumultuous global economy. With crude prices having shed more than half their value over the past year, oil producing economies are feeling the sting of cheaper oil. More importantly, Saudi Arabia—OPEC’s largest member and the world’s top oil producer—bears watching as oil stays below $50 and a global glut depresses oil prices, analysts say. Even before China surprised markets by announcing a record drawdown of its foreign currency denominated assets, Saudi Arabia had already begun selling its reserves to plug a hole in its budget and support its flagging currency, the riyal. In February and March, the world’s largest oil exporter saw net foreign assets drop by more than $30 billion, the biggest two- month drop on record. These asset sales are important because Saudi holds one of the world’s largest […]

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Look out world—China’s not the only central bank in town selling its currency reserves to cope with a tumultuous global economy. With crude prices having shed more than half their value over the past year, oil producing economies are feeling the sting of cheaper oil. More importantly, Saudi Arabia—OPEC’s largest member and the world’s top oil producer—bears watching as oil stays below $50 and a global glut depresses oil prices, analysts say. Even before China surprised markets by announcing a record drawdown of its foreign currency denominated assets, Saudi Arabia had already begun selling its reserves to plug a hole in its budget and support its flagging currency, the riyal. In February and March, the world’s largest oil exporter saw net foreign assets drop by more than $30 billion, the biggest two- month drop on record. These asset sales are important because Saudi holds one of the world’s largest […]

Click here to view full article at peakoil.com

The logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is pictured at its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, August 21, 2015. Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia sees no need to hold a summit of producing countries’ heads of state if such discussions would fail to produce concrete action towards defending oil prices, sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The comments followed a meeting of Gulf Arab oil ministers with Qatar’s emir in Doha, at which a Venezuelan proposal for an OPEC and non-OPEC summit was discussed. Oil prices have more than halved since summer last year on an oversupplied market as well as a decision by OPEC to defend market share and discourage competing supply sources, rather than cut its output in the face of cheaper crude. Riyadh believes it is best not to interfere in the market at present, the sources told Reuters on condition […]

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A gas flame is seen in the desert near the Khurais oilfield, about 160 km (99 miles) from Riyadh, June 23, 2008. Saudi Arabia’s crude oil production fell slightly by 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) in August, an industry source told Reuters on Wednesday, but still maintained historically high output levels in line with a strategy of defending market share. The world’s top oil exporter pumped 10.26 million bpd in August, while crude supplied to the market was at 10.18 million bpd, down by about 78,000 bpd from July, the industry source said. Supply to the market, both domestically and for export, may differ from production depending on the movement of oil in and out of storage. "Production is based on customers’ needs. It is an indication that Saudi is trying to match the customers’ needs," the source said. This week Saudi-based industry sources said the kingdom’s level of […]

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A view of the Khurais oilfield, about 160 km (99 miles) from Riyadh, June 23, 2008. A shake-up of Saudi Arabia’s oil leadership by King Salman has introduced a new element of unpredictability to its energy policymaking at a moment when Riyadh is grappling with slumping crude prices and its war in neighboring Yemen. State oil giant Aramco has been without a permanent chief executive since April, when Khalid al-Falih was made health minister, and the old Supreme Petroleum Council, where energy policy was historically made, was abolished in January. While the world’s top crude exporter has always prized stability and consistency in crafting oil policy, the changes, alongside a shift in market strategy that contributed to the world price slump, have left analysts and traders guessing as to King Salman’s long-term vision. The main tenets of Saudi oil policy – maintaining the ability to stabilize markets via an […]

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