ISLAMABAD
Crude oil prices edged lower for the third consecutive session on Wednesday amid demand concerns.
As of 1325 hours GMT, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, shed $0.97 (-1.17 percent) to reach $81.90 a barrel. Similarly, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main oil benchmark for North America, went down by $1.14 (-1.46 percent) to $76.68 a barrel.
Both Brent and WTI ended the last week higher by 6.35 percent and 6.27 percent, respectively. Brent rose to $83.55 a barrel from $78.56 a barrel last week, showing an increase of $4.99 on a week-on-week (WoW) basis. Similarly, WTI closed the week higher to $78.01 from $73.41 a barrel, registering a weekly increase of $4.60. Both benchmarks shed more than 10 percent in 2023 on a year-on-year basis.
On the other hand, the price of Russian Sokol increased by $0.02 (+0.03 percent) to $76.22. Arab Light prices witnessed an increase of $0.10 (+0.12 percent) to reach $83.41 a barrel. Similarly, the price for Opec Basket increased to $84.19 a barrel with an uptick of $1.19 (+1.43 percent).
The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of Saharan Blend, Girassol, Djeno, Zafiro, Rabi Light, Iran Heavy, Basra Light, Kuwait Export, Es Sider, Bonny Light, Arab Light, Murban and Merey.
Oil settled lower as attention shifted to demand concerns in China, where a real estate crisis deepened with a Hong Kong court ordering the liquidation of property giant China Evergrande Group.
The deepening real estate crisis is a blow to investor confidence in the top oil importer’s economy, with earlier data showing slower than expected activity.
Meanwhile, Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil-producing company, said it will not increase its production to 13 million barrels per day as was previously announced, and will instead maintain its maximum sustainable capacity at 12 million bpd. The company made the decision after receiving a directive from the kingdom’s Ministry of Energy, Saudi Aramco said on Tuesday in a statement to the Tadawul stock exchange, where its shares are traded. It did not provide other details, but said it will update its capital spending guidance when its full-year 2023 results are announced in March. TLTP
