Whiting Petroleum Launches $350M Note Offer

Whiting Petroleum Corp. said Monday it has launched a public offering of $350 million in senior subordinated notes to repay other outstanding debt. The notes will be due in 2018. Banc of America Securities, J.P. Morgan Securities and Wells Fargo Securities are the joint book-running managers.

Whiting explores for oil, and natural gas in several parts of the U.S. Its largest projects are in North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas. The shares rose $3.50, or 3.8 percent, to $96.28 in regular trading before the announcement. In extended trading, they added 3.8 percent to $96.28.

Courtesy The Associated Press


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Crude Oil Hovers Above $74 as Traders Eye US Economy

Crude oil prices slipped to near $74 a barrel Monday in Asia as traders weighed whether growing Chinese demand can offset weak U.S. fuel consumption amid high unemployment. Benchmark oil for October delivery was down 25 cents at $74.35 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 42 cents to settle at $74.60 on Friday.

Most investors took heart after the Labor Department on Friday said private employers added 67,000 jobs in August, more than analysts expected. However, the jobless rate rose in August to 9.6 percent from 9.5 percent in July, showing that unemployment remains high despite massive stimulus spending during the last year. Oil prices have been in a holding pattern around $75 for most of the past year as developed countries rebound from last year's recession but economic growth threatens to slow in the second half.

Traders are looking to China and other emerging economies to fuel demand for commodities in coming years. If China continues to grow at its current rate of about 9 percent a year until about 2030, its oil demand would equal all of today's global crude production, HSBC chief economist Stephen King said. "So the likelihood is over the next five to ten years, we'll see significantly higher oil prices," King said. "The China story is becoming more and more important."

In other Nymex trading in October contracts, heating oil fell 0.43 cent to $2.05 a gallon and gasoline dropped 0.33 cent to $1.916 a gallon. Natural gas for October delivery skidded 3.9 cents to $3.90 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude was down 6 cents at $76.61 on the ICE Futures exchange.

From The Associated Press - Singapore

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Oil Hovers Above $68 as US crude Inventories Drop

(AP:LONDON) Oil prices hovered above $68 a barrel Wednesday after a two day plunge as a drop in U.S. crude inventories suggested demand may be recovering. Benchmark crude for October delivery was up 60 cents to $68.29 a barrel by midday European time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract Tuesday lost $1.91 to settle at $68.05. Oil sank almost $5 a barrel in the first two days of the week as investors worried that a global economic recovery this year would be slow and may not justify the big rallies in stocks and commodities since March.

U.S. stock indexes fell about 2 percent Tuesday.

Investors were cheered somewhat when the American Petroleum Institute said late Tuesday that U.S. inventories plunged 3.2 million barrels last week. Analysts had expected the API numbers to drop 1.9 million barrels, according to a survey by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.

The Energy Department reports mandatory supply figures later on Wednesday, while refiners voluntarily report the API numbers. There were also signs Tuesday that the U.S. economy the biggest consumer of oil is improving.

The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, said its manufacturing index rose in August, indicating an expansion for the first time since January 2008. And the National Association of Realtors said pending U.S. home sales rose to the highest level in more than two years.

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for October delivery rose 1.81 cents to $1.80 a gallon and heating oil gained 2.41 cents to $1.78 a gallon. Natural gas jumped 3.6 cents to $2.86 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude was up 67 cents at $68.40.

Saudi Aramco, Total Sign $9.6B Refinery Deals

State run oil giant Saudi Aramco and France's Total S.A. on Tuesday signed $9.6 billion in deals with contractors to build the 400,000 barrel per day Jubail export refinery, one of the oil rich kingdom's top projects. The two companies awarded 13 contracts for the project, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. The Jubail refinery is seen as a key part of Saudi Arabia's plan to boost overall capacity. But the joint venture had suffered.....Complete Story

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Crude Oil Stockpiles Drop

Crude inventories dropped again last week, though gasoline stockpiles continued to rise as refineries increased output, the government said Wednesday. Crude inventories fell by 3.7 million barrels, or 1 percent, to 350.2 million barrels, which is 18.3 percent above year ago levels, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report. Analysts had expected a drop of 2.2 million barrels for the week ended.....Complete Story

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