Saudi Arabia raises oil prices for Asia and Europe
Saudi Arabia raised most of the prices of its oil supplied to countries in Asia and Europe, indicating an increase in demand for oil in these regions.
It is reported Bloomberg.
State-controlled Saudi Aramco raised most official selling prices for Asia in April. Arab Light crude rose to $2.50 a barrel above the regional benchmark, up 50 cents from March.
This is the second month in a row that Aramco has raised prices for Asia, its largest market. Aramco sells about 60% of its oil to Asia, most of it under long-term contracts whose prices are revised monthly. China, Japan, South Korea and India are the biggest buyers.
Prices for American customers remained unchanged. Prices for Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean jumped as much as $1.30 per barrel.
This year, Brent crude fell by 1% to slightly more than $85 per barrel amid a slowdown in the global economy and an increase in interest rates.
Aramco CEO Amin Nasser suggested last week that the situation is gradually improving: “Demand from China is very strong,” he said, also noting “excellent” demand in Europe and the US.
Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter and heads the OPEC+ group of producers along with Russia. The alliance, which includes 23 countries, suggests it will not increase production until at least next year.
The company’s pricing decisions are often followed by other Gulf producers such as Iraq and Kuwait.
