Mid-Week Review

The Case For $100 Oil

The odds of an oil price spike this year are much higher than the prevailing consensus in the market, according to a new report from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The oil market has been tightening rapidly this year, due to OPEC+ cuts taking supply off of the market, outages in Iran and Venezuela, and a slowdown in U.S. shale. But forthcoming regulations from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) could provide an additional jolt, particularly as global inventories decline against the backdrop of a tightening market.  Click here to read more from OilPrice.com.

Oil prices steady as market focuses on supply risks

Oil prices were steady on Tuesday, as fighting in Libya and falling Venezuelan and Iranian exports raised concerns over tightening global supply, but uncertainty surrounding an OPEC-led production cut limited gains. “We are still viewing the price consolidation of the past week as a pause in a sustainable bull market in which fresh highs still represent a strong possibility,” Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates, said in a note. Click here to read more from CNBC.

Houston Port Imposes One-Way Traffic Restriction, Boon for Oil Suppliers

Up for a game of “Texas Chicken”? That’s the name when two huge marine vessels pass each other in the Houston Port, creating wakes which push the ships apart then rapidly draw them together. Larger ships make it too dangerous for ships to travel in the opposite direction, functionally turning the Houston Port into a one-way highway until the ship is passed. Now, the Port of Houston is limiting that one-way travel to once per week. Oil ships, which are generally under the 1,100 feet length restriction limit, can still travel as needed, meaning imports and exports will be somewhat freed up by the move, while freight hauling may be limited. The restrictions highlight the call on folks to expand the Houston Port to be deeper and wider – which may ultimately allow larger crude carriers into the region to facilitate America’s rising oil export power. Click Here to read more from FreightWaves.

Iran Oil Buyers Stay on Sidelines as Waiver Decision Looms

The biggest buyers of Iranian oil are said to be putting their purchases on hold as they wait to see whether the White House will extend waivers allowing them to keep buying the crude. Most Asian buyers are avoiding imports for next month as it’s unclear what will happen to the exemptions that are set to expire in the first week of May, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Even if the waivers are extended, it would be too late to order and receive cargoes for the month, said the people who asked not to be identified as the information is private.  Click here to read more from Investing.com.

Russia’s Gazprom Neft sees global oil deal ending in mid-2019

Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of Russian gas giant Gazprom, expects the global oil deal between OPEC and its allies to end in the first half of the year, a company official said on Tuesday. Vadim Yakovlev, first deputy CEO of Gazprom Neft, said the global oil alliance should still remain in place, at least in the form of coordination between the world’s top global oil producers. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other large oil producers led by Russia agreed to cut their combined oil output by 1.2 million barrels per day from Jan.1 for six months in order to support oil prices and balance the market. The deal’s participants will meet in June in Vienna to decide on the future of the deal. Several Russian officials have hinted at the possibility of ending the cuts in June.  Click here to read more from Reuters.