China

News
February 20, 2021
Prepayment deals are rare in the oil world and this was meant to improve Iraq’s financial situation. While the government is still struggling, its position has improved on soaring oil prices, largely thanks to the rollout of coronavirus vaccines.
News
February 10, 2021
While prices continue to surge, some of the biggest moves in the past day have come at the front of the futures curve. Brent’s nearest timespread has surged -- a key sign of market tightness -- while key swaps tied to the physical North Sea market have also increased amid frenzied trading of derivatives late Tuesday.
News
February 08, 2021
It’s another milestone in a stellar comeback from the biggest demand destruction in a generation after the pandemic forced countries to lock down, devastated economies and grounded planes. West Texas Intermediate futures increased 0.3% on Tuesday, rising every day this month and taking gains to 11%.
News
February 05, 2021
2020's economic crisis triggered by the coronavirus was the worst the petroleum industry has ever seen. Fuel demand crashed by a fifth, prices slumped below zero, and more than a billion surplus barrels poured into storage tanks worldwide. In spite of all this, oil is posting a remarkable 2021 recovery.
News
February 05, 2021
Crude prices have soared since early November on optimism Covid-19 vaccines will restore energy demand and deep supply cuts by OPEC and Russia. Yet many major economies remain in strict lockdowns and some are struggling to source enough vaccine doses.
News
February 03, 2021
Inventories capped a seventh weekly decline last week, dropping to 990 million barrels, according to market intelligence firm Kayrros.
News
February 03, 2021
Tighter crude supplies are bringing traders flocking back to the oil market. Holdings of WTI futures contracts are now at their highest level since April, having jumped by the equivalent of more than 235 million barrels so far this year.
News
February 01, 2021
“There’s a sense that normalcy will occur and it’s looking more certain,” boosting the outlook for oil demand, said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research. Meanwhile, “the Saudi production cuts start today, and people are focused on falling inventories and how the market is tightening.”
News
January 25, 2021
The cat-and-mouse games that avoid detection and sanctions include ship-to-ship transfers, shell companies and silenced satellite signals. But there’s another aspect to the dodge. It involves “doping” the oil with chemical additives and changing its name in the paperwork so it can be sold as a wholly different crude without a trace of its Venezuelan roots.
News
January 25, 2021
With the U.S. campaign of “maximum pressure” now over, Iran’s oil customers may be growing a little bolder.
News
January 25, 2021
Iraq pledged to cut output in January and February after pumping more than its OPEC+ quota last year, and Libyan guards halted some crude exports after a pay dispute. Crude was also buoyed by a renewed climb in global equity markets as investors focused on the prospect of additional stimulus.
News
January 01, 2021
Trelleborg’s NjordGuard cable protection system will protect inter array grid power cables on the project from over-bending, abrasion, and fatigue.
News
January 20, 2021
Traders have piled into oil this year, with output cuts from Saudi Arabia helping drive prices to the highest since February.
News
January 15, 2021
China National Offshore Oil Corp. has for years drilled in waters far from its borders, and within 200 miles of countries including Vietnam and the Philippines. The activity amounts to the oil giant acting like a “bully” for China’s military to intimidate its neighbors, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement announcing the move, which restricts access to U.S. technologies without specific permission.
News
January 11, 2021
There have been signs across the oil market of traders expecting tighter supplies following the Saudi cuts. The shape of the Brent futures curve returned to backwardation earlier this week, meaning more immediate prices are trading at premiums.
News
January 08, 2021
Democratic wins in elections in Georgia mean the party is poised to take control of the Senate, House and presidency, spurring a broad move higher in financial markets. That came after Saudi Arabia pledged earlier in the week to cut production by 1 million barrels a day in February and March.
News
January 08, 2021
“Opening the shale revolution to the world through the export ban lifting helped shift the global oil market psychology from supply scarcity to abundance,” said Karim Fawaz, director of research and analysis for energy at IHS Markit. “It unshackled the U.S. industry to keep growing past its domestic refining limitations.”
News
January 06, 2021
Temperatures across much of Europe and Asia are well below normal and forecasters expect them to stay there for most of January. The chill is supporting oil prices, which are holding above $50 a barrel, while the profit from turning crude into diesel climbed in Europe to the most since August in recent weeks as consumers -- many stuck working from home because of a resurgent virus -- burn more heating fuel.
News
January 06, 2021
Even after Covid-19 has wreaked havoc on almost everything else, the new year begins with surging growth for renewable energy.
News
January 05, 2021
Futures in New York gained toward $48 a barrel after dropping the most in 2 weeks on Monday. Discussions will restart on Tuesday after a majority of members, including Saudi Arabia, opposed Russia’s proposal for another supply hike.
News
January 04, 2021
Talks between OPEC and its allies will continue for a second day after most members, including Saudi Arabia, opposed Russia’s proposal for another output increase in February, following the 500,000 barrels a day being added this month.
Connect with World Oil
Connect with World Oil, the upstream industry's most trusted source of forecast data, industry trends, and insights into operational and technological advances.