Venezuela, Iran Ink Oil Invest Deals for South Pars, Dokobuki Field

Iran and Venezuela signed three oil deals Sunday during a Venezuelan presidential visit as the Islamic republic tries to mitigate the risk of new sanctions, Iranian news agencies said Monday. The accords were signed as Tehran is coming under increased international pressure over its nuclear program, including a threat to enforce sanctions against import products to Iran. The semi-official Mehr news agency said on Monday that Iran and Venezuela signed three memorandums of understanding in the energy sector in Tehran on Sunday as part of a visit to the country by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. They include two agreements of reciprocal investments in Iran and Venezuela each worth $760 million, according to Mehr and Shana, Iran's Oil Ministry news agency.....Read the entire article

Iran Sees OPEC Maintaining Current Oil Output

Iran, the second largest exporter of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, predicted on Sunday the cartel will maintain current oil output at its meeting next week, despite producers being unhappy with the prevailing price of crude. "There is a feeling among OPEC oil ministers that the group wants to maintain current ouput levels," Mohammad Ali Khatibi, Iran's representative to OPEC, told AFP ahead of Wednesday's meeting of the group in Vienna. "I think it is unlikely we will see any noticeable change. Based on comments already made by OPEC ministers, the output ceiling will not change." OPEC, whose 12 members pump 40% of the world's oil, agreed in late 2008 to remove a massive 4.2 million barrels a day of output from the market in a bid to shore up crumbling prices......Read the entire article

BP: Best in Class

Stephanie Link, director of research for Action Alerts Plus Portfolio, argues that BP's recent oil discovery provides much needed growth potential.



Get a current trend analysis for BP.....Just Click Here!

Thin Trading Seen In Commodties While Stocks Surge

Crude oil price continues hovering around 68 level in European morning. We believe thin trading remains throughout the as US and Canada are on public holidays. Stock markets in Asia and Europe gain amid expectations that G-20 leaders will collaborate to oversee the global financial system. Stock markets in Asia advanced with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising +1%. In Japan, Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed +1.3% to 10320. In China, the Shanghai Composite Index edged +0.68% higher to 2881 and Hong Kong&'s Hang Seng Index gained +1.5% to 20629. In Europe, benchmark shares surge. UK&'s FTSE 100 Index opens higher and is currently rising +2.6% to 4923. Both Germany&'s DAX and France&'s CAC 40 also add +1.5% to 5465 and 3651, respectively. Finance ministers and central bank.....Read the entire article

Oil Rises as Weaker Dollar Encourages Buying, Equities Climb

Crude oil rose for a second day as a weaker dollar encouraged investors to buy commodities and stronger equity markets signaled optimism the economic recovery remains on track. Oil rose, tracking stock markets in Europe and Asia, as the Group of 20 nations agreed on steps to shore up the global financial system. The U.S. currency weakened against the euro for a second day. All 26 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted OPEC will maintain its production target at 24.845 million barrels a day at a Sept. 9 meeting in Vienna. “Oil is a bit supported by the weaker dollar and stronger equities,” said Eugen Weinberg, a senior analyst with Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. “We know that OPEC will not cut, the question is how this will be taken by the market”.....Read the entire article

Crude Oil Falls Below $68 on Speculation Global Supplies Ample

Crude oil dropped below $68 a barrel on speculation supplies are ample as the end of summer driving in the U.S. compounds already weak global demand. A report tomorrow will probably show consumer credit in the U.S., the world’s largest oil consumer, fell for a sixth month as banks restricted lending and rising unemployment damped borrowing. OPEC member states are unlikely to change output levels when they meet this week, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Iran’s representative to the group, Mohammad Ali Khatibi.“The trade is kind of anticipating a period of slack seasonal demand coming up, which I think is possibly going to keep the upside fairly limited,” said Toby Hassall, research analyst with Commodity Warrants Australia Pty in Sydney. “We’ll just have to see if the refineries start to scale back their runs”.....Read the entire article

Natural Gas: Extreme Contango Suggests Caution for E&P Companies

The price of Natural Gas is hovering just below $3, which is about the median price over the past two decades. Or is it? While the spot price has garnered lots of headlines recently for its collapse, the future price has declined much much less so. The quoted price for a year from now is above $5. Clearly the spot price is very depressed relative to the future price. In fact, it is at a record percentage differential. In the chart below (click to enlarge), I have divided the one year forward price by the 1-month forward price. The mean spread has been 6%. You will see I included lines for +/- 2 standard deviations as well. The current relationship is more than 4 standard deviations from the mean. At this point.....Read the entire article

Where is Oil Headed Next Week?

CNBC's Sharon Epperson discusses the day's activity in the commodities markets, and looks ahead to where oil is likely headed next week.

Despite sliding prices, the LNG keeps coming

Despite the steady drop in natural gas prices, Gulf Coast liquefied natural gas terminals are expecting a steady stream of shipments in the coming weeks. Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass terminal received an LNG shipment at its dock this week and a second tanker is due by the middle of next week. And the Trunkline LNG terminal in Lake Charles, La., could see as many as three new tanker loads of LNG in the coming weeks, according to Waterborne Energy, a Houston-based LNG market tracking firm. “The last place you would expect to see a potential 20 bcf build in LNG imports in today's weak natural gas environment would be the U.S. Gulf,” Waterborne Energy said in a report Thursday.....Read the entire article

Gold Shines Again While Crude Loses Glitter

Star of the week was obviously gold which broke out of recent broad trading range and set to resume the long uptrend with target above 1000. We find the rally impressive as the dollar remained range bounded. While momentum looks strong, we would be more convinced that the precious metal will make new high above 1033.9 if a close above 1000 is seen. We will have 3 central bank meetings in the coming week, namely RBNZ, BOE and BOC. While we expect no change in monetary policies, policymakers' outlook on economic development and exit strategies from stimulus should provide guidance on currency and gold movements.On the other hand, crude oil's rally has lost steam after jumping to 75. Focus next week will be OPEC's meeting, although it's broadly anticipated that the cartel will not alter production quota. In coming months, crude oil should trade within a range of 65-75.....Read the entire article