Oil rose to above $42 a barrel on Friday, adding to gains in the previous session, after OPEC producers and allies promised to meet supply cuts and signs of demand, hit by the coronavirus crisis, recovering. Iraq and Kazakhstan, during a meeting of an OPEC+ panel on Thursday, pledged to comply better with oil cuts, sources said. This means curbs by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+, could deepen in July....
Oil prices rose around 1% on Friday, adding to gains in the previous session, after OPEC producers and allies promised to meet commitments on cutting supply and two major oil traders said demand was recovering well. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures climbed 38 cents, or 1%, to $39.22 a barrel. If the laggard producers do compensate over the next three months for their overproduction, that will effectively take extra barrels out of the market, even if OPEC+ does not extend its record 9.7 million barrels per day supply cut beyond July....
(Bloomberg) -- Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and JD.com Inc. handled record sales of $136 billion during the country’s biggest online shopping gala of the post-pandemic era, suggesting China’s nascent consumer spending recovery has legs.The twin e-commerce giants put nationwide consumption to its first major test since the pandemic with the annual “6.18” summer extravaganza that concluded Thursday. Transactions across JD’s online platforms during the 18-day marathon leapt 34% to 269.2 billion yuan ($38 billion), a faster pace than in 2019. And Alibaba said it handled 698.2 billion yuan during its own campaign, without a year-earlier comparison. JD’s shares stood largely unchanged after rising 3.5% in their Hong Kong debut.China’s largest retailers counted on pent-up demand during the event -- created by JD to commemorate its June 18 founding anniversary -- to make up for lost sales during a coronavirus-stricken March quarter. Global brands and smaller merchants alike stocked up on goods...
Asian shares and U.S. stock futures teetered in choppy trade on Friday as lingering concerns about an fresh spike in coronavirus cases offset growing hopes for a quick economic recovery. Oil futures rose in Asia on hopes that output cuts will put a floor under prices. On the whole, markets have been sideswiped this week on fresh contagion concerns, prompting some investors to temper their optimism about how quickly the global economy can recover for the pandemic....
(Bloomberg) -- The cluster of oil tankers off China’s coast is growing and the vessels are waiting longer to offload their cargoes amid a lack of onshore storage space after a buying spree earlier this year.The number of oil-laden tankers parked in Chinese waters has swelled since the start of the month with almost 200 ships expected over the course of June, according to vessel-tracking information compiled by Bloomberg and data intelligence firm Kpler. Crude imports surged to a record in May as demand rebounded after the easing of lockdown restrictions.The congestion illustrates the explosion in purchases by Chinese refiners as the country re-opened after shutting down to contain the coronavirus. The rush for cheap crude is overwhelming port infrastructure and storage amid an influx of cargoes from the Middle East, Latin America, Russia and West Africa.China’s oil demand rebounded rapidly from the demand destruction wrought by the outbreak, but there...
(Bloomberg) -- Oil was poised to resume a run of weekly gains on signs consumption is picking up as economies emerge from lockdowns, despite many countries still struggling to bring the coronavirus under control.Futures in New York edged above $39 a barrel Friday and are up around 8% this week. Top trading houses Vitol SA and Trafigura Group said global oil demand is recovering rapidly from its nadir in April, with Trafigura estimating it’s at 90% of pre-virus levels. Gasoline futures in the U.S. moved into backwardation for the first time in three months on Thursday, a bullish signal that indicates supplies are tightening as the summer driving season gets underway.A potential resurgence of the virus is clouding the long-term outlook, however. Traffic in Beijing has plunged as authorities battle a fresh outbreak, while some U.S. states including Texas are still seeing record increases in cases.Oil is resuming its upward trend...
