Middle East crude benchmark spot premiums of Oman, Dubai and Murban nudged up on Friday, while posting losses on weekly basis given ample supply after the OPEC+ decision to hike output from May.
Oil prices were little changed on Friday, heading for a modest weekly gain as easing U.S.-China trade tensions were somewhat offset by higher supply expectations from Iran and OPEC+.
SINGAPORE CASH DEALS
Cash Dubai’s premium to swaps rose 1 cent to $1.15 a barrel.
Vitol and Gunvor will each deliver a July-loading Murban crude cargo to PetroChina following the deals.
NEWS
China has emerged as the top customer for Canadian oil shipped on the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline, ship tracking data showed, as a U.S. trade war has shifted crude flows in the year since the pipeline started operating.
Lotte Chemical 011170 plans to start operations at its new cracker in Indonesia in the second half of 2025, an executive at Lotte’s Malaysia affiliate said on Friday.
The United Arab Emirates plans to increase the value of its energy investments in the United States to $440 billion in the next decade, it said on Friday, boosting U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to secure major business deals during his Gulf tour.
U.S. oil producer Chevron Corp CVX and several European companies are in talks with the Trump administration to obtain authorizations to keep their stakes in joint ventures with Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA, three sources close to the matter said.
Canadian oil and gas producer Strathcona SCR said late Thursday it plans to launch a C$5.93 billion ($4.25 billion) takeover bid for peer MEG Energy MEG, aiming to create the country’s fifth-largest oil producer.
Source: Reuters