www.oilfutures.co.uk The members of the OPEC+, who met virtually last week, decided to leave the production cuts unchanged, perhaps in light of stagnating oil prices.  Having failed to shore up the prices by tinkering with the supply side of the oil equation, the de facto leader of the organization, Saudi Arabia, even the raised the price of its flagship Arab Light crude for Asian buyers for the third successive time, while inadvertently leaving the loyalty of the old customers in the region on the line. Although the Kingdom had been in the habit of raising the price of o ..read more

  With the latest manufacturing data from China that shows a relative slowdown, compared to March, both the traders and investors have been compelled to accept the inevitable; it is neither easy nor feasible to shore up the oil and gas prices in the current circumstances. According to China's National Statistics Bureau, the manufacturing manager's PMI for April was 50.4%,  a drop of 0.4% from that of March; having been below 50% since September, 2023 - the threshold - the key Chinese manufacturing index rose above the latter in March. Investors, not just in oil and gas sectors, bre ..read more

  The energy markets breathed a sigh of relief on Friday, as the military conflict between the arch-enemies in the Middle East, Israel and Iran, appeared to have subsided - at least, for now. As the news trickled in about an Israeli strike inside Iran in the morning on Friday, it was not clear what really was going on in the Islamic Republic: the airspace was closed all of a sudden in the wee hours on Friday; there were reports about explosions in the city of Isfahan, the third largest Iranian city of immense cultural significance as well as the home for major military sites and above ..read more

  Credit: Google Maps With Iran's threat against Israel with a direct strike, the tension in the Middle East went up a few notches on the scale of uncertainty, as the United States made it clear once again that it would not be a passive observer if a conflict erupts The rising tension came in the wake of the daring attack carried out by Israeli F-35 fighter jets on the building that was adjacent to the Iranian embassy in Damascus, the Syrian capital. Seven Iranian nationals, along with a few Syrians, died in the attack, two of them were from the elite Iranian IRGC - Republican Guards ..read more

Total Solar Eclipse: April 8, 2024: Vivax Solutions The lucky folks along a relatively narrow geographical band, from Mexico all the way to Canda, are going to witness a rare celestial spectacle on Monday, April 8 – a total solar eclipse. The path of totality – where people can witness total darkness - cuts across fifteen US states, before rolling into Canada in its final mesmerising leg. In mathematical proportion to the excitement, the enviably famous American entrepreneurial spirit has already gone into full swing: the hotel bookings, closer to the path of totality, have gone up ..read more

China's Manufacturing PMI - March With China's manufacturing sector returning to the expansion territory in March, recording the highest manufacturing PMI since September, 2023, the economic outlook of the world's second largest economy depicts a positive picture - at last. The announcement on Sunday by China's National Statistics Bureau on the PMI, was further boosted by the fact that the country's logistic industry showed even better improvement in March; the data released on Tuesday shows that the logistics industry prosperity index rose by 4.4 points to 51.5. That means, Chinese ..read more

  Chart:www.oilfutures.co.uk | Data: OPEC As the 53rd JMCC, Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee, of the OPEC+ is scheduled to take place on April 3, analysts are looking at every possible scenario that could rise in the aftermath of such a meeting. A consensus has already emerged among them that the OPEC+ would stick to its production quota for each member country. That means the official position of the OPEC+ will maintain the current production cuts as long as necessary, without increasing the production to appease the influential customers.  The cartel wants to stic ..read more

  www.oilfutures.co.uk The data from 2023 clearly shows that China, the world's top importer of crude oil, is a factor that cannot be ignored when it comes to the stability in the crude oil markets. The trendline, based on the crucial crude oil import volumes, shows a gradual, not a steep, decline in line with the fluctuating manufacturing activities. The trendline of China's Purchasing Manager's Index, PMI, followed a similar pattern in 2023. There was a relative surge in crude oil imports in February on account of heavily discounted Russian oil after the war broke out betw ..read more

  The latest data from the EIA, US Energy Information Administration, suggests that the US had been the largest producer of crude oil in 2023, despite turning to other sources to boost the global oil production. It has been more than 4 years since the US became a net exporter of crude oil. The data explicitly shows that the US retains the crown for the largest production, while pushing both Russia and Saudi Arabia down to the second and third place respectively. As of December 2023, the US accounted for 12.9% of the global oil production. The same figures for Russia and Saudi Arabia ..read more

Test your knowledge of the oil and gas industry: Time: 30 minutes Created by Crude Oil Futures This quiz covers significant milestones, key players, and evolving challenges in the oil and gas industry. It delves into historical developments, technological advancements, and contemporary issues impacting the sector. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting your journey in the oil and gas world, this quiz is an opportunity to test your knowledge and stay informed about the dynamic landscape of this vital industry.   Start the Quiz   Submit Quiz ..read more