BEIJING, March 11 (Reuters) – Middle East crude benchmarks Oman, Dubai and Murban shaded weaker on Friday as major oil producers strive to bring more supply to the market to offset the embargos on Russian cargos, while policymakers around the globe mull tapering inflation.Qatar Energy has sold four May-loading crude cargoes via tenders at record premiums after buyers avoided Russian oil amid fears of Western sanctions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Spot premiums for al-Shaheen crude nearly tripled from the previous month after the producer sold two al-Shaheen crude cargoes to Unipec and PetroChina at about $12 a barrel above Dubai quotes, they said. The cargoes will load on May 2-3 and 29-30.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comExports of Malaysia’s flagship Kimanis crude oil are set to fall to six cargoes in May, down two from April, due to maintenance at oilfields offshore Sabah, a preliminary loading schedule showed on Friday. read more Sinopec’s (600028.SS) 250,000 barrels-per-day Yangzi refinery will shut down its whole plant for a 61-day planned maintenance, starting from March 15, according to a company statement. OSPKuwait raised the official selling prices (OSPs) for two crude grades it sells to Asia in April from the previous month, a price document reviewed by Reuters showed on Friday. read more The producer has set April Kuwait Export Crude (KEC) price at $4.80 a barrel above the average of Oman/Dubai quotes, up $2.25 from the previous month.It also raised the April Kuwait Super Light Crude (KSLC) OSP to $5.95 a barrel above Oman/Dubai quotes, up $2.60.The price hike for KEC was 10 cents more than that for Saudi’s Arab Medium crude in the same month.WINDOWCash Dubai’s premium to swaps fell 61 cents to $11.48 a barrel.PRICES ($/BBL)India’s ONGC Videsh failed to get bids in its tender to sell 700,000 barrels of Russian Sokol crude in a growing backlash against Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, sources familiar with the matter said. read more This was the first tender by ONGC Videsh, since the war in Ukraine began on Feb. 24.NEWSNorwegian state oil company Equinor (EQNR.OL) has stopped trading Russian oil as it winds down operations there in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. read more Canada is studying ways to increase pipeline utilization to boost crude exports as Europe seeks to reduce its dependence on Russian oil. read more European Union leaders are set to agree on Thursday to cut their reliance on Russian fossil fuels, although they are divided over whether to cap gas prices and to sanction oil imports as Moscow wages war in Ukraine. read more The European Central Bank will stop pumping money into financial markets this summer, it said on Thursday, paving the way for an increase in interest rates as soaring inflation outweighs concerns about the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. read more For crude prices, oil product cracks and refining margins, please click on the RICs below.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Muyu Xu and Florence Tan; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. .
Palm oil vaults to historic premium over soyoil in India, sparking shifts in buying patternsThe Black Sea accounts for 60% of world sunflower oil output and 76% of exports. Ports in Ukraine will remain closed until the invasion ends. read more “Asian and European refiners have raised palm oil purchases for near-month shipments to replace sunoil. This buying has lifted palm oil to irrational price level,” said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.”They have the option of buying soyoil as well. But prompt soyoil shipments are limited and they take much longer to land in Asia compared to palm oil,” he said.Soybean production in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay is expected to fall because of dry weather. Price-sensitive Asian buyers traditionally relied on palm oil because of low costs and quick shipping times, but now they are paying more than $50 per tonne premium over soyoil and sunoil, said a Kuala Lumpur-based edible oil dealer.Palm oil’s price premium is temporary, however, and could fade in the next few weeks as buyers shift to soyoil for April shipments, the dealer said.Most of the incremental demand for palm oil is fulfilled by Malaysia, as Indonesia has put restriction on the exports, said an Indian refiner. “Malaysian stocks are depleting fast because of the surge in demand. It is the biggest beneficiary of the current geopolitical situation,” he said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
