Energy

April,07(A. E Report)—— Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) has signed a $240-million loan agreement with government to support Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project.According to SFD statement, the Kingdom’s agency that provides development assistance to developing countries, the Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project will enhance water and food security, and improve the standard of living for people living in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.The project, which is co-financed by the SFD, OPEC, Islamic Development Bank, and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, aligns with some of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). These include food security, clean water and clean energy.The project is expected to have a significant im...

April 9, 2023 at 4:29 am | Economic Affairs

March,22(E.A Report)--Electricity generation take a dip of 4% year-on-year decline by registering 11,541 MW during February 2023 as compared to 12,036 MW generated last year.The decline in generation is being attributed to lower generation from furnace oil, which was down 80% YoY, as well as coal (-57% YoY), wind (-44% YoY), and gas (-7% YoY).“This decline in power generation is triggered by the overall decline in economic activity across the country,” said Arif Habib Limited (AHL) in a report on Wednesday. “China Power Hub Generation and Thar Energy Limited generated zero electricity during February 2023 due to the coal import issues and transmission constraints on the back of the delay in the second transmission line between Thar a...

March 22, 2023 at 8:11 pm | Economic Affairs

March,22(Agencies) Malaysian palm oil futures tumbled on Wednesday to their lowest in five months, weighed down by sharp losses in rival edible oils and crude oil, and lingering concerns about the global banking crisis.The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 140 ringgit, or 3.7%, to 3,644 ringgit ($815.94) a tonne by the midday break, hitting its lowest since Oct. 14.Palm fundamentals remain strong but trading is weighed down by bearish sentiment, said Sathia Varqa, co-founder of Singapore-based Palm Oil Analytics.“Adding to the woes is uncertainty over interest rate decision from the Fed,” Varqa said. While recent market turmoil has eased, the Federal Reserve’s interest rate ...

March 22, 2023 at 7:46 pm | Economic Affairs

March,22(E.A Report) Pakistan Business Council (PBC), one of the country’s largest corporate advocacy platforms, has warned that time is running out for the country as it struggles to resume the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.“As stakeholders contest short-term power, Pakistan’s long-term future is in jeopardy,” said the PBC in a statement on Wednesday. “Drip feed and hope will not suffice. Without IMF’s programme and debt reprofiling, help from friendly nations is not forthcoming.” “Pakistan is running out of time,” it added.The statement comes as Pakistan reels from one of its worst economic crises in history. The South Asian country has been faced with a barrage of woes with a perceived default risk and do...

March 22, 2023 at 7:41 pm | Economic Affairs

March17(EA Report)--Oil and Gas Regulator(OGRA ) allowed Hi-Tech Lubricants for new oil storage facility in KP in addition of selling petroleum products through up to 35 fuel stations in the province.The regulator has also allowed the company to sell its petroleum products through up to 35 fuel stations in the province. The company shared the development in a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Friday.“We are pleased to inform that OGRA, through its letters dated March 16, 2023, has permitted HTL to operate new oil storage facility at Nowshera, KPK as well as start of sale/marketing of petroleum products through the operation of upto 35 fuel stations in KPK,” read the notice.The company said that the aforesaid operations/per...

March 17, 2023 at 2:59 pm | Economic Affairs

March16(Agencies) -- Oil prices rebounded to 1percent on Friday following Saudi Arabia and Russia meeting after a banking crisis sparked a sell-off in global financial and oil markets this week.

March 17, 2023 at 11:36 am | Economic Affairs

AgenciesOil prices eked out small gains on Tuesday, recouping losses earlier in the day triggered by investor worries about demand after renewed restrictions were imposed in Europe and Asia amid a rise in coronavirus cases.Brent crude oil futures gained 25 cents, or 0.3%, to $74.64 a barrel by 0732 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased by 19 cents, or 0.3%, to $71.48.“Energy traders don’t want to bet against OPEC+ but all the short-term risks from Omicron to Fed tightening is proving to be very disruptive to the short-term outlook for oil prices,” said Edward Moya, senior analyst at OANDA.“The virus spread across Europe is delivering a bigger hit than expected and when you calculate family gatherings...

December 14, 2021 at 1:35 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesSINGAPORE: Oil prices edged up on Tuesday after a near 5% rebound the day before as concerns about the impact of the Omicron variant on global fuel demand eased while Iran nuclear talks hit roadblocks, delaying the return of Iranian crude supplies.Brent crude futures rose 60 cents, or 0.8%, to $73.68 a barrel at 0520 GMT, after settling 4.6% higher on Monday. US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $70.23 a barrel, up 74 cents, or 1.1%, building on a 4.9% gain in the previous session.Oil prices were pummelled last week over concerns that vaccines might be less effective against the new coronavirus variant Omicron, sparking fears that governments may re-impose restrictions to curb its spread and hit global growth and oil demand.Howe...

December 7, 2021 at 12:22 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesBEIJING, Nov. 7— China's coal imports hit their highest level of 2021 in November, as the world's biggest consumer of the dirty fuel scrambled to feed its power system as the winter heating season kicked in.The country brought in 35.05 million tonnes of coal last month, up from 26.94 million tonnes in October, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Tuesday.Chinese coal traders, however, were forced to sell cargoes at losses or tried to delay imports after market intervention triggered a 50% price drop that saddled them with unprofitable supplies.Chinese authorities since October have also allowed some Australian coal, which had piled up at ports for almost a year due to political tensions between Beijing and Ca...

December 7, 2021 at 11:54 am | Economic Affairs

AgenciesSINGAPORE, Nov. 16—Oil prices rebounded from a weak start on Tuesday as worries over tight inventories underpinned prices, although optimism was limited by fears over demand following a pickup in COVID-19 cases in Europe.Brent futures added 61 cents, or 0.74%, to $82.66 a barrel, as of 0421 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbed 54 cents, or 0.67%, to $81.42 a barrel."At these oil prices, supply is going to grow but it might take six months and inventories have come down so low. We don't have a safety margin," said Tony Nunan, a Tokyo-based senior risk manager at Mitsubishi Corp."We have very low inventory levels and if we have a very cold winter and OPEC is still sluggish at increasing supplies that could push...

November 16, 2021 at 4:54 pm | Economic Affairs

Agencies SINGAPORE, Nov. 15— Crude oil prices fell on Monday, under pressure from expectations of increasing supplies and a lower demand forecast amid higher energy costs.Brent crude futures fell 45 cents, or 0.6%, to $81.72 a barrel, as of 0604 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lost 36 cents, or 0.5%, to $80.43 a barrel.Oil markets have dropped for the last three weeks, hit by a strengthening dollar and speculation that President Joe Biden's administration might release oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve to cool prices."The White House has been debating how to tackle higher inflation, with some officials calling for the strategic reserve to be tapped, or halting U.S. exports," ANZ analysts said in a report.U.S....

November 15, 2021 at 5:29 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesNov. 11— Oil prices were steady on Thursday after falling in previous session on concerns rising inflation in the United States, spurred by climbing energy costs, may prompt the government to release more strategic crude stockpiles to drive down prices.Brent crude futures fell on Wednesday by 2.5% and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures dropped by 3.3% after reports that U.S. inflation increased at the fastest rate in 30 years pushed the dollar higher and crude inventories in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil consumer, rose after the government released some strategic reserves.Brent crude futures gained 31 cents, or 0.4%, to $82.95 a barrel at 0515 GMT, while WTI futures rose 29 cents, or 0.4%, to $81.63.“Crude prices are t...

November 11, 2021 at 4:51 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesTOKYO, Nov. 8– Oil prices rose on Monday after Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil producer Aramco raised the official selling price for its crude, suggesting demand remains strong at a time of tighter supplies.Brent crude was up by 90 cents or 1.1% at $83.64 a barrel, after dropping nearly 2% last week. US oil gained 87 cents or 1.1% to $82.14, having declined almost 3% through Friday.Aramco late on Friday raised its December official selling price to Asia for its Arab light crude to $2.70 a barrel versus Oman/Dubai crude, up $1.40 from this month.The move by Aramco suggests "demand remains strong" as the OPEC producer and other major oil exporters keep the reins on supply, ANZ Research said in a note.The Organization of the Petroleu...

November 8, 2021 at 4:42 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesBEIJING, Nov. 6– China has boosted daily output of coal to a new annual high of 11.88 million tonnes after concerted efforts to alleviate a supply shortage as it heads into winter, the powerful state planner said, and production could rise further.The Asian giant's consumption of polluting coal has drawn scrutiny this week as nations gathered in Glasgow to discuss further measures needed to slow global warming.Beijing, by far the world's biggest consumer of coal and also the top producer of climate-warming greenhouse gases, is committed to reducing coal use, but only after 2025."According to current production increase trends, the daily production rate is expected to soon exceed 12 million tonnes," the National Development and Re...

November 6, 2021 at 6:11 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesNov. 5— Oil prices rose on Friday after OPEC+ producers rebuffed a U.S. call to raise supply to cool the market, sticking to plans for a gradual increase in output after cuts made in the face of the coronavirus crisis.Brent crude rose 36 cents, or 0.45%, to $80.90 a barrel by 0912 GMT after touching $81.79. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 60 cents, or 0.76%, to $79.41 after rising as high as $80.17.The OPEC+ group of major producers agreed on Thursday to stick to their plan to raise oil output by 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) from December, ignoring calls from U.S. President Joe Biden for extra output to cool rising prices. read moreTop OPEC producer Saudi Arabia dismissed calls for speedier increases from the Organizat...

November 5, 2021 at 6:50 pm | Economic Affairs

AgenciesTOKYO, Oct. 26— United States’ strong demand pushed Oil prices edged higher on Tuesday after trading down earlier.Brent crude was up 13 cents or 0.2% at $86.12 a barrel by 0427 GMT, after gaining 0.5% on Monday. US oil gained 5 cents or 0.1% to $83.81 a barrel, having finished unchanged the previous session after testing new highs.While China's red-hot power and coal markets have cooled somewhat after government intervention, energy prices remain elevated worldwide as temperatures fall with the onset of the northern winter."Forecasts for a colder November have energy traders bracing for a very tight market that will be met (with) unprecedented demand this winter," OANDA senior market analysts Edward Moya said in a note."This oi...

October 26, 2021 at 5:39 pm | Economic Affairs