Oil Prices News

Two Tankers Attacked in Gulf of Oman

Two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, leaving one ablaze and both adrift, shipping firms said, driving oil prices as much as 4% higher over worries about Middle East supplies.The Front Altair, carrying petrochemical feedstock, was on fire in waters between Gulf Arab states and Iran after an explosion that a source blamed on a magnetic mine. The Norwegian owner said its crew were safe.A second Japanese-owned tanker was abandoned after being hit by a suspected torpedo, the firm that chartered the ship said.

U.S. Urges Response "short of war" to Tanker Attack

The U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia said Washington should take what he called "reasonable responses short of war" after it had determined who was behind attacks on oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.Iran was a prime suspect in the sabotage on Sunday although Washington had no conclusive proof, a U.S. official familiar with American intelligence said on Monday. Iran has denied involvement."We need to do a thorough investigation to understand what happened, why it happened…

Saudi Tankers Among Those Hit off UAE Coast

Saudi Arabia said on Monday that two of its oil tankers were among those attacked off the coast of the United Arab Emirates and said it was an attempt to undermine the security of crude supplies amid tensions between the United States and Iran.The UAE said on Sunday that four commercial vessels were sabotaged near Fujairah emirate, one of the world's largest bunkering hubs lying just outside the Strait of Hormuz, but did not describe the nature of the attack or say who was behind it.The UAE had not given the nationalities or other details about the ownership of the four vessels.

Kirby Posts 2019 Q1 Results

Kirby Corporation announced net earnings attributable to Kirby for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 of $44.3 million, or $0.74 per share, compared with earnings of $32.5 million, or $0.54 per share, for the 2018 first quarter. Excluding certain one-time charges, 2018 first quarter net earnings attributable to Kirby were $37.9 million, or $0.63 per share. Consolidated revenues for the 2019 first quarter were $744.6 million compared with $741.7 million reported for the 2018 first quarter.David Grzebinski…

World Shares Higher on US-China Deal Hopes

Global shares rose on Monday amid growing optimism the United States and China will reach a trade agreement as soon as this month.U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might seal a formal trade deal around March 27, given progress in talks between the two countries, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.The two nations have imposed tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars worth of each others' goods, roiling financial markets, disrupting manufacturing supply chains and shrinking U.S.

World Shares Higher on US-China Deal Hopes

Global shares rose on Monday amid growing optimism the United States and China will reach a trade agreement as soon as this month.U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might seal a formal trade deal around March 27, given progress in talks between the two countries, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.The two nations have imposed tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars worth of each others' goods, roiling financial markets, disrupting manufacturing supply chains and shrinking U.S.

CMA CGM Books Rrecord Revenue

French container shipping group CMA CGM booked record revenue in 2018 as trans-Pacific goods traffic remained buoyant despite U.S.-Chinese trade tensions, but soaring oil prices cut deep into its profits, it said on Friday.The firm's 2018 volumes rose by 9.3 percent and for the first time exceeded 20 million TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units) due to a strong performance of most of the shipping lines operated by the group, in particular the Transpacific, India/Oceania and Africa lines.Full-year revenue grew 11.2 percent to a record $23.48 billion…

Brent Hits 2019 High on U.S.-China trade Hopes

U.S. crude stocks rise to 454.5 mln barrels as crude exports from U.S. hit record 3.6 mln bpd.Oil prices rose on Friday, supported by OPEC's ongoing supply cuts and hopes that Washington and Beijing may soon end their trade dispute.International Brent crude futures hit a new 2019 high of $67.60 a barrel, up 53 cents from Thursday's close.Further gains were tempered by U.S. crude oil production hitting a record 12 million barrels per day (bpd) and a surge in exports from the country.By 1125 GMT, U.S.

Ship Fuel: Singapore Bunker Volumes Dip, 2019 Uncertain

Sales of marine fuels in Singapore, the world's biggest ship fueling port by volume, totaled 49.8 million tonnes in 2018, down 2 percentfrom a record the year before, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Monday.December sales volumes of marine fuels, also known as bunkers, reached an 11-month high of 4.308 million tonnes, up 10 percent from November and the second-highest for the year, the data showed.The strong month helped lift Singapore's 2018 marine fuel sales figures to the second highest on record…

China-U.S. Trade Talks a Tonic to Battered Markets

World stock markets rallied on Friday after Beijing announced a new round of trade talks with Washington, though recession fears still had markets betting the next move in U.S. interest rates might be down.News that the United States and China would hold vice-ministerial level talks on Monday and Tuesday to resolve a trade dispute bought some respite to battered markets, with MSCI's world stock index up a third of a percent and U.S. stock futures around 1 percent firmer ."We're not expecting a major breakthrough on Jan.

Shipping Ponders the Ultimate Cost of ‘Green’

Low sulphur fuels, scrubbers, LNG and other solutions are all part of the mix. Handicapping the impact of any of these options for the bottom line is anything but easy. Getting greener is not the problem; determining the best way to get there is quite another.By any measure, the business of running vessels will not be the same after January 1, 2020, when the present 3.5% limit on sulfur content will ratchet downward to 0.5%. With the implementation date for the changes, enacted…

Diesel-Loaded Tankers Stranded off Asia as Demand Wanes

Several tankers carrying diesel fuel are floating off Taiwan and Southeast Asian waters as a steep fall in oil prices kept buyers at bay, trade and shipping sources said on Friday, helping push rates to their highest since January 2016.With tanker rates also boosted by strong Chinese oil exports, it was a big relief for an industry that has been in the doldrums for the past three years.About seven to nine long-range tankers carrying about 5 to 7 million barrels of diesel are currently floating off Taiwan waters largely due to a drop in bunker fuel demand from the South China Sea…

The Tipping Point: U.S. Exports more Oil than it Imports

The United States last week exported more crude oil and fuel than it imported for the first time on record, underscoring the nation's growing influence as a supplier of oil to the world.Exports of crude surged in the week to Nov. 30 to more than 3.2 million barrels per day, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Thursday.When adding in all imports and exports of crude and refined products, for the week the U.S. exported a net 211,000 bpd – the first time that has happened, according to U.S.

Hyundai Merchant Marine Loss Grows in Q3

South Korea's largest shipping firm by sales Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) said that its operating loss in the third quarter increased to 123.1 billion won (US$108.65 million) from 29.5 billion won in the same period last year.According to the company, the net loss widened due to unfavorable market conditions and high fuel costs.According to Yonhap, the net loss reached 166.7 billion won (US$146.7 million) in the July-September period, compared with a net loss of 60.3 billion won during the same period last year."Bunker fuel prices reached $445 per metric ton in the third quarter…

Maersk Warns Trade War Will Impact Box Shipping

Top U.S. importers are stocking up on Chinese goods before new import tariffs take effect, shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk said on Wednesday, but warned a trade war would hit demand for container shipping in the coming years.Maersk's data indicated that imports into the United States from China had grown 5 to 10 percent year-on-year in the third quarter as companies such as Walmart and Home Depot built up inventories to avoid new import tariffs, Chief Executive Soren Skou said."The irony is that after (U.S.

Low EU River Stir Fuel Markets in Singapore

Rhine water levels hit record lows in October; river is a key fuel transport hub for Europe.Low water levels on the Rhine river have caused a fuel supply deficit in parts of Europe's industrial heartlands that is sucking up cargoes from more than 10,000 km away in Singapore.Following a long, scorching summer, water levels on the Rhine - a key commodity shipping lane connecting industrial centres in Switzerland, Germany, France and the Netherlands to major seaports - fell to record lows…

Fitch Warns: Shippers' Costs and Capex may Increase

More stringent fuel regulations regarding sulphur content could significantly increase global shipping companies' operating costs and capex needs, says Fitch Ratings in a new report."This may negatively affect their credit quality unless they manage to pass these costs to customers. Many shipping companies have started implementing fuel surcharges to recover costs associated with the new sulphur cap regulation, but their ability to sustain these will depend on market fundamentals…

SembMarine Sinks into USD 21.75 mln Loss in 3Q

Singapore-based rig builder Sembcorp Marine (Sembmarine) has reported a loss of S$30 million (US$21.75 million) in the third quarter of the year amid lower revenues and reduced activity. For the nine months to September 30, 2018 the loss is $80.1 million, compared to restated earnings of $142.9 million in the same period previous year.According to a stock exchange annoucement from the Asian company based in Singapore, the net loss for both 3Q and 9M periods were mainly due to…

Moore Stephens: Ship Operating Costs to Rise in 2018, 2019

International accountant and shipping consultant Moore Stephens says total vessel operating costs in the shipping industry are expected to rise by 2.7% in 2018 and by 3.1% in 2019, according to our latest survey.Responses to the firm’s latest annual Future Operating Costs Survey revealed that drydocking is the cost category likely to increase most significantly in both 2018 and 2019, accompanied in the latter case by repairs and maintenance. The cost of drydocking is expected to increase by 2.1% in 2018 and by 2.3% in 2019…

LNG Shipping Rates Double Since End-August

Headline rates for shipping liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Pacific and Atlantic basins stand at around $140,000 to $150,000 a day for a 160,000 cubic meter LNG tri-fuel diesel electric (TFDE) vessel, brokers say.That is a 6-year high and compares to Atlantic basin rates of $75,000 at the end of August and around $95,000 at the end of September.Rates have jumped due to supply from new plants, longer distances traveled and anticipation of higher prices prompting shippers to lock in longer-duration contracts."Charterers continue to lock in multi-month contracts ahead of the winter and we continue

Oil And Gas CEO: New Tech Creates Opportunity

Data from KPMG’s 2018 Oil and Gas CEO Outlook, released Oct. 10, reveals that globally, almost all oil and gas CEOs believe new technology creates opportunities. Eighty-five percent are piloting or have already implemented Artificial Intelligence (AI).However, only 59 percent feel their organization is an active disruptor in their own sector, and 57 percent feel that the lead times to achieve significant progress on transformation can be overwhelming"Technology is disrupting the status quo in the oil and gas industry.

Moore Stephens: Ship Operating Costs Decline Again

International accountant and shipping consultant Moore Stephens says total annual operating costs in the shipping industry fell by 1.3% in 2017. This compares with the 1.1% average fall in costs recorded for 2016. For the third successive year, all categories of expenditure in 2017 were down on those for the previous 12-month period, most notably for insurance costs and stores.The findings are set out in OpCost 2018 (www.opcostonline.com), Moore Stephens’ unique ship operating costs benchmarking tool…

Shipping Confidence Slips on Geopolitical Fears

Shipping confidence dipped very slightly in the three months to end-August 2018, according to the latest Confidence Survey from international accountant and shipping adviser Moore Stephens. Moore Stephens' Richard Greiner weighs in:The average confidence level expressed by respondents was down to 6.3 out of a maximum possible score of 10.0, this compared to the four-year-high of 6.4 recorded in May 2018. Confidence on the part of owners, however, was up from 6.6 to 6.8, equalling the highest level achieved by this category of respondent when the survey was launched in May 2008…

Oil Could Rise to $100 by 2019

Oil prices could rise towards $100 per barrel towards the end of the year or by early 2019 as sanctions against Iran bite, commodity merchants Trafigura and Mercuria said on Monday at the Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference (APPEC) in Singapore.Almost 2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude could be taken out of the market as a result of the U.S. sanctions against Iran by the end of the fourth quarter this year, said Daniel Jaeggi, president of commodity merchant Mercuria Energy Trading…

5000th Ship Installed Inmarsat Fleet Xpress

The 5,000th ship installation of Inmarsat Fleet Xpress, the world’s only high-speed, globally-available Ka-band VSAT service designed for mobility and available from a single operator, is set to be completed by the close of the month.Following its launch in March 2016, Fleet Xpress has emerged as the market-leading pathway to digital transformation as shipping companies seek to deliver improved vessel and fleet efficiency, boost profitability and enhance seafarer wellbeing.The latest data compiled by the respected…

Canada Should Bring in Stronger Rail Cars for Crude Before 2025 - official

Canada ought to require stronger tank cars for transporting flammable liquids sooner than the current deadline in 2025, Transportation Safety Board Chair Kathy Fox said on Thursday, noting that crude-by-rail shipments are expected to rise in the country."We understand that it can't happen all at once. But we'd like to see it sooner," Fox said in an interview, without giving a specific alternative date. "We do have an ongoing concern that flammable liquids be transported in the…