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HOUSTON: Oil prices fell 2 percent on Tuesday, reversing earlier gains as US consumer prices unexpectedly rose in August, giving cover for the US Federal Reserve to deliver another hefty interest rate increase next week.
Brent futures for November delivery fell $2.05, or 2.2 percent, to $91.95 a barrel by 11:38 a.m. ET (1638 GMT). US crude was down $1.73, or 2 percent, to $86.05 per barrel.
The consumer price index gained 0.1 percent last month after being unchanged in July, the US Labor Department said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 0.1 percent fall.
Fed officials are set to meet next Tuesday and Wednesday, with inflation way above the US central bank’s 2 percent target.
“The Fed may have to raise rates quicker than expected which could cause a ‘risk back off’ sentiment in crude and further strength to the dollar,” said Dennis Kissler, senior vice president of trading at BOK Financial.
Oil is generally priced in US dollars, so a stronger greenback makes the commodity more expensive to holders of other currencies.
Renewed COVID-19 curbs China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer, also weighed on crude prices.
The number of trips taken over China’s three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday shrank, with tourism revenue also falling, official data showed, as COVID-linked restrictions discouraged people from traveling.
Both contracts rose by more than $1.50 a barrel earlier in the session, supported by concerns over tighter inventories.
“The oil market’s structural outlook remains one of tightness, but for now, this is offset by cyclical demand headwinds,” Morgan Stanley said in a note.
The US’ strategic petroleum reserve fell 8.4 million barrels to 434.1 million barrels last week, the lowest since October 1984, according to government data on Monday.
US commercial oil stocks were forecast to have risen 800,000 barrels during the same week, analysts forecast in a Reuters poll.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries on Tuesday stuck to its forecasts for robust global oil demand growth in 2022 and 2023, citing signs that major economies were faring better than expected despite headwinds such as surging inflation.
RIYADH: Global oil demand growth will rebound strongly next year as China eases COVID-19 lockdowns, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday, adding that an economic slowdown will pause growth only briefly at the end of this year.
The outlook preserves a relatively bullish view for robust growth next year despite economic headwinds, built on the expectation that China will get back to work while growth in air travel will boost jet fuel demand.
The IEA’s forecast of demand growth this year of 2 million barrels per day is mostly concentrated in the first half of the year and is set to fall to nothing in the fourth quarter.
Offsetting the hit to demand by the economy, a switch from gas to oil for power generation will provide a 700,000 bpd boost in the last quarter of this year and the first of the next especially in Europe and the Middle East, the IEA said. For 2023, growth is set for 2.1 million bpd mostly due to hopes of recovery in China.
Rich countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development accounted for most of the rise in demand this year, while countries outside the group, especially China will underpin growth next year provided Beijing relaxes its COVID-19 curbs.
“Non-OECD countries will cover three-quarters of 2023’s gains if China reopens as expected,” the IEA added.
Russian oil exports
Meanwhile, Russian oil exports are set for a bumpy ride as the EU plans to impose a ban on maritime services transporting it on Dec. 5.
The ban will push Russian oil production down to 9.5 million bpd by February next year, the IEA said, a 1.9 million bpd drop compared to February 2022. A plan by G7 countries to cap Russian oil sales prices and not ban the trade may ease those losses.
Europe diesel imports
Europe is increasingly turning to non-Russian suppliers for its diesel needs with imports of the fuel this month on track to reach a three-year high, data from oil analytics firm Vortexa showed.
The data, covering Sept. 1-11, showed Europe on course to import 1.65 million bpd of diesel this month, up from 1.46 million bpd last month, and the highest since August 2019.
• The IEA’s forecast of demand growth this year of 2 million barrels per day is mostly concentrated in the first half of the year.
• Offsetting the hit to demand by the economy, a switch from gas to oil for power generation will provide a 700,000 bpd boost in the last quarter of this year.
• Russian oil exports are set for a bumpy ride as the EU plans to impose a ban on maritime services transporting it on Dec. 5.
• Europe is increasingly turning to non-Russian suppliers for its diesel needs with imports of the fuel this month on track to reach a three-year high.
It also showed diesel imports from Russia accounted for 44 percent of the total so far in September, down from 51 percent in the whole of August and 60 percent in July.
At the same time, the Middle East’s share of European diesel imports reached 30 percent, up from 23 percent in August.
Imports from the Middle East for the whole of September are set to rise about 50 percent from August to 500,000 bpd, their highest since May 2018, the data showed.
Imports from Asia are set to remain broadly steady at around 225,000 bpd in all of September versus August, but are over three times higher than in July, and near last November’s recent high, the data showed.
RIYADH: Al-Ittefaq Steel Products Co. is intending to offer part of its shares for public subscription on Saudi Arabia’s main market, Jassim Al-Abbas, general manager of business development, sales and marketing, told Argaam.
The value of the company is estimated at over SR8 billion ($2 billion), he said, adding that Hilal Al-Tuwairqi owns around 60 percent of the firm’s capital, while the remaining 40 percent is held by other investors.
A deal with the financial adviser to manage the company’s initial public offering is expected soon, the executive said, adding that the subscription study and preparation for the regulatory requirements may last until 2023.
RIYADH: The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology has partnered with the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority to increase human capacity and innovation in the field of AI in Saudi Arabia and the region.
The partnership deal was signed during the 2022 Global AI Summit in Riyadh, according to a statement.
“The SDAIA-KAUST Center of Excellence in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence will focus on educational development and upskiling the new generation of Saudi citizens in AI,” KAUST President Tony Chan said.
The center “will be the hub for innovative solutions and talent development by leveraging artificial intelligence to position the Kingdom as a leader in the new data driven era,” Majid Altuwaijri, CEO of National Center for Artificial Intelligence, said.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s wheat storage capacity amounts to 3.5 million tons, distributed across 14 branches in the Kingdom, the deputy governor of the Saudi Grains Organization, Mohammed Al-Fawzan, told CNBC Arabia.
The official said that a project to construct silos in NEOM city has also been awarded to enhance the Kingdom’s storage capacity. The storage capacity of the silos will be 120,000 tons.
He said Saudi Arabia has eight strategic commodities in strategic storage, including wheat, soybeans and corn.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Food Industries Polytechnic has signed a training and employment agreement with the Coldstores Group of Saudi Arabia to raise the rate of localization in the Kingdom’s food sector.
The agreement will see the development of a joint cooperation mechanism to promote, rehabilitate and employ Saudi cadres in different areas of the food industry, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
This comes as part of the institute’s aim to empower and qualify Saudi cadres and strengthen training programs in a bid to provide opportunities for young people.
The success rate of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture localization initiatives has exceeded 50 percent, a top official told Al-Ekhbariya in August.
The ministry’s director of localization initiatives, Mosa Al-Kinani, said work was underway to localize professions of beekeeping, fishing, and livestock breeders.
The ministry’s strategy is yielding results as more Saudis are joining the above-mentioned professions.
Kinani said his ministry was working with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to develop plans to boost the success of the localization drive.
Also earlier this month, Saudi Transport Minister Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser said that Saudi Arabia was working to localize 18 professions over the next year.
While speaking at the Local Content Forum in Riyadh, Al-Jasser revealed that the transportation sector of the Kingdom was working to increase the proportion of Saudi nationals in all its services.
“The transportation system is working to increase the proportion of localization in all its services. We are close to the percentage of full localization for the profession of co-pilot, and soon the full localization of pilots will be achieved,” said Al-Jasser.
