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Crude Oil Price Movements
Table 1.1: OPEC Reference Basket and selected crudes, US$/b
The performance of major oil benchmarks was mixed over the month. North Sea Dated
Brent and Dubai values were down by $2.63 and $1.78, respectively, while US light
sweet marker WTI was up slightly by 53¢. Spot differentials for physical crude related
to Brent were hammered over the month with an oversupply of light sweet crude in the
Atlantic Basin. Low US demand for light sweet imports has left a backlog of unsold
cargoes in the Atlantic Basin.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) cut its July official selling price
formulae for Bonny Light and Qua Iboe to 10-year lows relative to North Sea Dated in
response, and Bonny Light’s spot premium to North Sea Dated more than halved to
just 20¢/b. An overhang of around 15 unsold July cargoes emerged a week after the
August programme. Loading delays also hurt certain Nigerian grades as refiners
looked for more reliable alternatives. Moreover, West African (WAF) crudes were
undermined by plentiful supply and relatively high fright rates for their cargoes, making
cheap North Sea and Mediterranean grades more attractive to some European buyers.
Spot premiums for Mideast Gulf cargoes also fell on slimmer demand and the prospect
of Atlantic Basin crude arriving in Asia Pacific. Asia Pacific cargoes came under
pressure as cargoes were sold from storage, adding to the region’s supply glut.
Oversupply in the Atlantic Basin eroded Brent’s premium to Dubai to about 50¢/b from
$3/b in January. Yet crude supply is plentiful in the Asia Pacific, the key market for
Mideast Gulf exports, with abundant storage and an increase in Malaysian crude
production weighing on price.
Change
May 15
Jun 15 Jun/May
2014
2015
OPEC Reference Basket
62.16
60.21
-1.95
105.30
55.12
Arab Light
62.62
60.94
-1.68
106.01
55.32
Basrah Light
60.40
58.63
-1.77
103.20
53.29
Bonny Light
65.31
62.19
-3.12
111.22
58.66
Es Sider
63.22
60.79
-2.43
108.60
56.81
Girassol
65.51
63.28
-2.23
109.40
58.86
Iran Heavy
61.38
59.86
-1.52
105.17
54.17
Kuwait Export
60.92
59.29
-1.63
104.15
53.57
Marine
63.26
61.79
-1.47
105.12
56.49
Merey
55.09
51.74
-3.35
94.96
48.09
Murban
66.18
64.59
-1.59
108.46
59.50
Oriente
58.04
56.71
-1.33
95.77
50.46
Saharan Blend
64.12
61.69
-2.43
110.09
58.12
Other Crudes
Brent
64.32
61.69
-2.63
108.95
57.92
Dubai
63.54
61.76
-1.78
105.27
56.69
Isthmus
63.78
63.48
-0.30
100.98
56.05
LLS
64.95
63.23
-1.72
104.97
57.97
Mars
61.77
59.41
-2.36
100.76
54.44
Minas
62.98
60.09
-2.89
110.51
56.35
Urals
64.33
62.52
-1.81
107.44
57.76
WTI
59.28
59.81
0.53
100.88
53.25
Differentials
Brent/WTI
5.04
1.88
-3.16
8.07
4.67
Brent/LLS
-0.63
-1.54
-0.91
3.98
-0.05
Brent/Dubai
0.78
-0.07
-0.85
3.68
1.23
Year-to-date
Note: Arab Light and other Saudi Arabian crudes as well as Basrah Light preliminarily based on American
Crude Market (ACM) and subject to revision.
Sources: Platt's, Direct Communication and Secretariat's assessments.
6
OPEC Monthly Oil Market Report – July 2015