old news as of PIT session close time yesterday
-----------------------
By Mark Shenk - Apr 14, 2011 1:27 PM PT
Crude Oil Advances on Reports Saudi Arabia Reduced Production This Month
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-...y-unit-shut-u-s-gasoline-supplies-tumble.html
Crude oil climbed for a second day in New York on reports that Saudi Arabia, holder of the worldâs largest oil reserves, reduced output this month.
Futures rose 0.9 percent after John Sfakianakis, chief economist at Riyadh-based Banque Saudi Fransi, said the desert kingdom cut production by 300,000 barrels a day. Barclays Plc said Saudi Arabia may be reducing production of its lighter oil blends introduced in response to the slump in Libyan output.
âThe news that the Saudis are cutting output should be scaring the daylights out of people,â said Bill OâGrady, chief market strategist at Confluence Investment Management in St. Louis. âIt looks like they couldnât find buyers for their light blends.â
Libyan Oil Shortfall
Falling Libyan crude production bolstered prices for comparable low-density, low-sulfur grades. Saudi Arabia developed two blends to offset the Libyan shortfall.
<b>Nigeriaâs Bonny Light crude, a grade with similar properties to the missing Libyan barrels, has surged 30 percent this year and touched $130.13 on April 8, the highest level since July 22, 2008. The grade slipped 8 cents to $125.60 a barrel at 3:09 p.m., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.</b>
âIf Saudi Arabia is cutting back on anything, theyâve cut back on those blends,â said Amrita Sen, a commodities analyst at Barclays in London.
Elections in Nigeria this month may lead to decreased output from Africaâs top crude-producing country. Attacks by armed groups in the Niger delta region, home to Nigeriaâs oil and gas industry, cut more than 28 percent of the countryâs oil output between 2006 and 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News.
âThe geopolitical situation is getting worse,â said Ray Carbone, president of Paramount Options Inc., a broker on the New York Mercantile Exchange. âThe Saudis cut production, thereâs problems in Nigeria and sweet crude is diminishing.â
U.S. Economic Data
Oil also increased after the dollar dropped as U.S. initial jobless claims rose and producer prices advanced at a slower pace, signaling the Federal Reserve will keep borrowing costs low. A falling U.S. currency increases the appeal of raw materials priced in dollars. The greenback dropped as much as 0.5 percent to $1.4515 per euro.
<b>âOil rose as soon as the dollar dropped,â said Carl Larry, president of Oil Outlooks & Opinions LLC in Houston. âTodayâs economic data makes it less likely that the Fed will raise rates, which is weakening the dollar.â</b>
Oil volume in electronic trading on the Nymex was 701,989 contracts as of 3:13 p.m. in New York. Volume totaled 1.03 million contracts yesterday, 29 percent above the average of the past three months. Open interest was 1.59 million contracts the most since March 14.