Middle East crude benchmark spot premiums of Oman, Dubai and Murban edged higher for a second session on Tuesday as oil prices held steady after a plunge in the previous week.

Oil prices were broadly stable on Tuesday after new tariff exemptions floated by U.S. President Donald Trump and a rebound in China’s oil imports were offset by the IEA following OPEC in cutting its oil demand forecast.

Traders are waiting for the results of QatarEnergy tenders. The producer has offered crude cargoes for June loading in its monthly tenders that closed on Tuesday.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS

Cash Dubai’s premium to swaps rose 12 cents to $1.75 a barrel.

PetroChina will deliver four June-loading Murban crude cargoes following the deals, with two to Vitol, one to Gunvor and one to ExxonMobil.

REFINERY

Japanese oil refiner Taiyo Oil restarted both crude distillation units (CDU) at its 138,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Shikoku refinery in western Japan in early March following scheduled maintenance, a company spokesperson said on Tuesday.

NEWS

Russia’s revenue from sales of crude oil and oil products in March declined by 21% from a year earlier to $14.29 billion as oil prices fell, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.

Russia, the world’s second biggest oil exporter and second largest natural gas producer, sees stable crude production and significant growth in natural gas production and exports over the next quarter century, according to its new energy strategy.

Kuwait has begun taking executive steps to merge two of its state-owned oil firms, news agency Kuna reported on Tuesday, as the OPEC producer seeks to restructure its energy industry.

Kazakhstan’s oil output fell in the first two weeks of April by 3% from the March average, the energy ministry said on Monday, confirming a Reuters report, but is still above the OPEC+ quota it has pledged to meet after months of overproduction.
Source: Reuters