SINGAPORE, Aug 7 (Reuters) - The Middle East crude market
held firm on Wednesday, underpinned by Iraq's supply disruption,
robust refining margins and the approach of peak seasonal winter
demand.
Trade for October-loading cargoes is expected to start on a
strong note next week, extending a bull run from the last month.
"The sentiment is unchanged from last month, a little
bullish," a North Asian trader said. "OSP-linked grades will
start trading at premiums."
Uncertainty over Basra Light's September and October supply
could spark stronger demand for alternative grades such as Oman
and Banoco Arab Medium, traders said.
The Singapore market will be closed for the next two days
due to public holidays.
*TENDERS
- Tasweeq offered deodorised field condensate and low
sulphur condensate in a tender to close on Aug. 20 with bids
valid until two days later.
*TRADES
- Trafigura bought three Dubai partials from Phibro at
$103.80 a barrel.
*MARKET NEWS
- Iran's incoming President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday
offered an olive branch to the United States in talks on
Tehran's disputed nuclear programme, raising hopes of progress
after years of stalemate.
- Iran has taken delivery of several new oil tankers in
recent weeks as it relies more on its own fleet capacity to help
sustain crude export shipments in the face of western sanctions.
- Indian Oil Corp, India's biggest refiner, aims to
import 23.4 percent less oil from sanctions-hit Iran in the
fiscal year to March 2014 compared with a year earlier, Indian
oil minister M. Veerappa Moily said.
- Iraq's crude oil production rose to 3.250 million barrels
per day (bpd) at the beginning of August from 2.942 million bpd
a year earlier, an oil ministry official said, indicating it
could exceed its output target for end-2013.
- Iraq's Kurdistan region is exporting crude oil by truck to
an Iranian port for shipping to Asia, industry sources say,
using a trade route that is likely to anger both Baghdad and
Washington.
- The North Sea's Buzzard oilfield will begin exporting
crude again following the re-opening of the Forties Pipeline
System (FPS) after five days of planned maintenance, a Nexen
spokeswoman said on Tuesday.
CRUDE ($/bbl) Price Prev Change
OCT DME Oman diff to Dubai swap 1.71 1.72 -0.01
SEP Brent 107.75 108.23 -0.48
OCT Dubai 102.25 102.90 -0.65
OCT DME Oman 103.96 104.62 -0.66
SEP Brent/Dubai EFS 4.85 4.67 +0.18
