Middle East crude benchmarks Oman, Dubai and Murban dropped on Friday as the Brent/Dubai EFS fell to parity, making crude from Atlantic Basin and Americas more economical to Asian refiners.

The EFS, representing the premiums of Brent futures to Dubai swaps, averaged at over $4 a barrel in the beginning of 2023.

It sharply fell over the past months as Middle Eastern crude outperformed Brent-pegged grades after OPEC+ deepened and prolonged production cuts, which heightened concerns over sour crude tightness.

Analysts expected Saudi Arabia to extend its voluntary supply cut for a third consecutive month into October.

Meanwhile, rising prices of a popular Russian crude sold to China are poised to peak soon as more independent refiners are likely to switch to cheaper oil from Iran, which has ramped up exports to fresh 4-1/2 year highs in August, several trade sources said.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS

Cash Dubai’s premium to swaps fell 36 cents to $2.00 a barrel. Glencore will deliver one October al-Shaheen crude cargo to Vitol following the trades.

NEWS

Workers at offshore platforms that supply gas to Woodside’s North West Shelf liquefied natural gas plant in Australia have approved an in-principle agreement reached between the company and unions, a union alliance said on Friday.

Global energy trader Gunvor’s first-half net profit slipped to $803 million from $841 million a year earlier, it said on Friday, citing lower price volatility in gas and oil markets, while it more than doubled a provision set aside for a potential U.S. fine.

Ecuador’s government will honor the result of a referendum to block oil operations in the Amazon, which will see machinery removed within a year, the government said on Thursday.

Global subsidies for fossil fuels rose by $2 trillion over the past two years to reach a record $7 trillion in 2022, according to new estimates from the International Monetary Fund.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Muyu Xu; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)