The July Brent Futures flat price had a weak start to the afternoon, reaching a low of $82.05/bbl at 13:30 BST before aggressively shooting up to a high of $83.80/bbl at 16:45 BST, after which it retraced down slightly and hovered around $83.50/bbl at 17:15 (time of writing). The EIA reported that US crude inventories fell by 415kbbls last week, with commercial crude stocks declining by 1.36mbbls whilst the SPR’s stocks rose by 947kbbls. Additionally, US implied oil demand also fell by 127kbbls/d w-o-w to 20.3mbbls/d. Japan’s oil product demand rose 175kbbls/d m-o-m to 3.784mbbls/d, however this still represents a seasonal 5-year low for the country. An ExxonMobil-led consortium achieved peak production of 252kbbls/d from its Liza Unity production vessel in Guyana according to Alistair Routledge, Exxon’s Guyana Country Manager. Nigeria’s oil minister has stated that with adequate investment, the country’s oil production could rise from its current 1.3mbbls/d to over 6mbbls/d, positing that lack of investment stemming from corruption is the greatest impediment to the nation’s prosperity. Iran’s oil minister Javad Owji has announced that the country has exported more than $35 billion worth of oil in the last Persian year (Mar 21 2023 to Mar 21 2024). The front and 6-month spreads are $0.55/bbl and $3.24/bbl, respectively.
