Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Secondary Navigation
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Search
Search:
Russia cuts oil duty but exporters disappointed
Reuters - Sunday, November 2
By Lyudmila Zaramenskikh
MOSCOW, Nov 1 - The Russian government cut oil export duties on Saturday, responding to the concerns of top producers who feared making losses on overseas shipments.
However, the cut was far less than oil companies had wanted and it remained unclear whether they would proceed with November export plans or redirect their oil to the domestic market to avoid the duty.
"It was the minimum reduction and it does not significantly raise the appeal of exports," a source at one of Russia's oil companies said.
The duty was set at $287 per tonne from November 1, down from $372.20, Russian news agencies reported. That was the level favoured by Russia's Finance Ministry, finance and economics ministry sources said on Friday.
The Finance Ministry, led by fiscal hawks who are counting on income from Russia's oil resources to help stave off the effects of the global financial crisis, calculated its proposal to protect its budget requirements, the sources said.
Russia's senior energy official, Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, was backing a steeper cut to $195.20 per tonne, with the support of the oil industry lobby, the sources said.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered proposals for a new formula for crude oil export tariffs, based on market prices, to be prepared by December 1, news agencies said.
World number two exporter Russia, alarmed by falling prices, has said it would not join OPEC oil producers' efforts to regulate prices by cutting production, but has said it would like closer ties with OPEC and more influence on prices.
OPEC decided late last month to cut around 5 percent of world oil supply to put a floor under prices. The cut has had a limited impact as concerns about global recession continued to exert pressure on prices.
LOSS-MAKING EXPORTS
At the October duty level, industry sources said exports appeared loss-making after oil's fall from record high prices of over $140 per barrel in July.
Russia's Urals blend crude <URL-E> was trading around $59.55 per barrel on Friday , including the cost of delivering the oil to Mediterranean ports.
Trade sources said earlier on Saturday that Russia's largest oil companies were preparing to cut at least half a million tonnes from the 11.5 million tonne November seaborne export plan if the government failed to trim duty enough.
"Rosneft and TNK-BP have cancelled two hundred thousand tonners, and LUKOIL has cancelled all its Primorsk volumes for the first 10 days of November," a trade source said on Saturday.
Pipeline monopoly Transneft's export programme showed TNK-BP was planning to export 300,000 tonnes, Rosneft 700,000 tonnes and LUKOIL 300,000 tonnes from the Baltic port of Primorsk in the first 10 days of November.
From the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, TNK-BP was to export 85,000 tonnes, Rosneft 140,000 tonnes and LUKOIL 160,000 tonnes.
The oil companies were not immediately available for comment on Saturday.
Trade sources said earlier this week that oil for delivery to the domestic market in November traded as low as 2,000 roubles per tonne, or around $10.30 per barrel, as oil companies gave up hope for a duty cut in early November.
Domestic prices are based on export netbacks, or the return the oil companies receive on a barrel of oil shipped to international markets.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
Average (0 votes)
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Related Articles: Oil Price Hike
Russia cuts oil duty but exporters disappointedReuters - Sunday, November 2
Libyan leader seeks energy deals with RussiaReuters - Sunday, November 2
Nippon Mining slashes profit f'cast on oil slideReuters - Saturday, November 1
Oil prices extend losses in Asian tradeAFP - Friday, October 31
Related Articles: Business
No big sellers in sight to save troubled ChryslerAP - Sunday, November 2
TOPWRAP 3-China, India feel crisis; Brown seeks Gulf helpReuters - Sunday, November 2
Russia cuts oil duty but exporters disappointedReuters - Sunday, November 2
Bond film opens with guns blazing in BritainReuters - Sunday, November 2
Chrysler halts Renault-Nissan talks, favors GM-paperReuters - Sunday, November 2
Related Full Coverage
oil price hike
oil price hike
All Full Coverage
Most Popular – Business
Viewed
US presidential race enters final weekend
Consumers curb spending, deepening recession fears
Bali bombers await firing squads as Indonesia stands guard
Australian F1 race posts record financial loss
Millions remember Philippine dead
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology