LCO 0.00% Add to/Remove from Watchlist CL -0.10% Add to/Remove from WatchlistInvesting.com -- Oil prices rose Thursday, adding to the previous session’s gains on increased concerns over the potential for supply disruptions from the crucial Middle East region. By 09:25 ET (14.25 GMT), the futures traded 0.8% higher at $73.25 a barrel and the contract climbed 0.5% to $78.66 a barrel. Risk of supply disruptions risesBoth contracts surged around 3% on Wednesday after protests over high fuel prices caused Libya’s El Sahara oil field to halt production, with the field producing about 300,000 barrels per day. A survey by the news agency points to the group’s output falling by a marginal 40,000 barrels a day in December month-on-month. “Given that some OPEC+ members agreed on additional voluntary cuts of almost 900,000 bbls/d for 1Q24, OPEC output will edge lower this month,” analysts at ING said, in a note.

Investing.com -- Oil prices rose Thursday, adding to the previous session’s gains on increased concerns over the potential for supply disruptions from the crucial Middle East region. Risk of supply disruptions risesBoth contracts surged around 3% on Wednesday after protests over high fuel prices caused Libya’s El Sahara oil field to halt production, with the field producing about 300,000 barrels per day. Tensions are growing in the Middle East, and although supply from this crucial region has yet to be seriously impacted traders are beginning to add a premium given the growing possibility that this occurs. “Given that some OPEC+ members agreed on additional voluntary cuts of almost 900,000 bbls/d for 1Q24, OPEC output will edge lower this month,” analysts at ING said, in a note. Related ArticlesOil prices rise again on increased chance of disruptions to Middle East supplyOil steadies as Middle East supply worries balance economy concernsGold slips below $2,050 as dollar rebounds amid Fed uncertainty

China stocks remained under pressure, with uncertainties about a recovery in the world’s second-biggest economy keeping investors on the fence. Krosby said in an email the minutes underscored an “uncertain” policy path suggesting expectations for a rate cut in March may need to be ratcheted down further. Goldman Sachs analysts though still expect the first rate cut in March and five total cuts in the year, calling the comments in the minutes dovish. Fed officials in December predicted 75 bps of rate cuts in 2024, driving money-market bets for around double that amount amid market optimism that spurred a year-end rally in stocks and bonds. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields briefly climbed above 4% on Wednesday before heading lower and were last at 3.920% in Asian hours.

SpaceX launched the first six Starlink satellites with direct to cell capabilities in its first mission of 2024 on Tuesday evening. SpaceX and partner T-Mobile say the service will provide coverage in cellular dead zones in the most remote locations. The first six direct to cell satellites will first be used to test the service in the United States, Jessie Anderson, SpaceX structures engineering manager said during the Jan. 2 webcast. This capability will first enable text messaging, and then voice and data coverage will follow after more satellites are launched. The Starlink satellites use partner spectrum to operate the service over their respective countries.

Oil futures: Crude extends gains on Libya outages, Red Sea turmoilQuantum Commodity Intelligence – Crude oil futures in European trading hours Thursday were climbing higher as markets consolidated the previous session's firm gains of over 3%, which came after protests in Libya shut in output at the county's largest oil field. Front-month Mar24 ICE Brent futures were trading at $78.96/b (1230 GMT), compared to Wednesday's settle of $78.25/b. The threats to Libyan output add to the wider Middle East turmoil, with the security situation in and around the Red Sea deteriorating and forcing many ships, including oil and LNG tankers, to divert around the southern African coast. InventoriesCrude prices were neutral after data from the American Petroleum Institute revealed that crude inventories tumbled by 7.4 million barrels last week, beating forecasts for a drop of 3 million barrels. But the drop in crude stocks was more than offset by the products sector, with gasoline inventories up 6.9 million barrels and distillate stocks adding 6.7 million barrels to deliver a net build.

Investing.com-- Oil prices rose slightly in Asian trade on Thursday, extending strong gains from the prior session as the shutdown of Libya’s biggest oilfield fueled more concerns over tight supplies. The shutdown came amid continued disruptions to shipping activity in the Red Sea, which markets feared could disrupt global oil supplies. Disruptions to Middle Eastern crude supply were a key point of support for oil prices in recent sessions, particularly on the grounds that they could result in tighter global oil markets in 2024. But the data also showed an outsized build in gasoline and distillate stocks, indicating that U.S. fuel demand remained weak. Protests over high fuel prices caused Libya’s El Sahara oil field to halt production, with the field producing about 300,000 barrels per day.

Jan 3 (Reuters) - Libya's oil protests forced a partial reduction in the oil production at Libya's Sharara oilfield, which produces 300,000 barrels per day, two engineers told Reuters on Wednesday. (Reporting by Ayman Werfalli in Benghazi, writing by Yomna Ehab and Louise Heavens)((yomna.ehab@thomsonreuters.com;))The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Oil rose more than 3% on Wednesday as the U.S. warned Houthi militants against further attacks in the Red Sea and OPEC pledged to remain united in supporting prices. This comes a day after Danish shipping giant Maersk halted all shipping through the Red Sea until further notice due to repeated Houthi attacks on vessels. German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd confirmed Wednesday that it would continue to avoid the Red Sea. Oil prices have been volatile this week, with U.S. crude and the global benchmark settling more than 1% lower on Tuesday despite Maersk's decision to continue avoiding the Red Sea due to attacks by the Houthis. OPEC and its allies issued a statement Wednesday pledging to remain united in the group's "efforts to maintain oil market stability going forward."

QNATripoli: Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Libya HE Khalid Mohammed Al Dosari took part in the meeting of Head of the Government of National Unity in the State of Libya HE Abdul Hamid Muhammad Al Dbeiba with Their Excellencies ambassadors of the Arab, African and Islamic States accredited to Libya. During the meeting, Their Excellencies ambassadors were apprised of the latest political developments in Libya.

Local protesters have halted production at the Libya's Sharara oilfield, according to Reuters and other media reports on Wednesday. The Sharara oilfield is one of the largest in Libya and can produce up to 300,000 bbl/day. It is operated by a joint venture between Libya's National Oil Company and Spain's Repsol, France's TotalEnergies, Austria's OMV and Norway's Equinor.

An engineer had earlier told Reuters a partial reduction in production had taken place and said that protesters were in front of the gate of the oilfield. The Sharara field, one of Libya's largest, has been a frequent target for local and broader political protests. It is run by state oil firm NOC via the Acacus company, with Spain's Repsol, France's Total, Austria's OMV, and Norway's Equinor. In July, production at the Sharara, Elfeel and 108 fields was stopped by tribal protesters over the abduction of a former finance minister. Libya's oil output has been disrupted repeatedly in the chaotic decade since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising against Muammar Gaddafi.

Libya’s largest oil field halts production followings protests(Bloomberg) – Libya’s largest oil field halted production after protesters entered the facility, according to a person with direct knowledge of the operations. The Sharara oil field was producing roughly 270,000 bpd on Tuesday before the protests began. Libya’s energy facilities have been the focus of conflict since the fall of dictator Moammar Al Qaddafi in 2011, with armed factions shutting down oil production to press their political and economic demands. Continuing agitation will result in “a tumbling of exports, in addition to shaking the confidence of foreign partners and impeding efforts to stabilize production,” according to the NOC letter. OPEC member Libya kept production stable at around 1.2 MMbpd for most of the last year.

The Benghazi Chamber of Commerce reported today that the Commercial Attache of the Tunisian Embassy in Libya organized for it a working visit to Tunisia from 17 to 23 December 2023. The visit included meetings with active commercial actors, including the Tunisian Export Promotion Centre, Tunis Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bizerte Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sousse, and Sfax Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The meetings, Benghazi Chamber reported, dealt with signing memorandums of understanding to enhance joint work opportunities, discussing increasing the volume of trade and investment opportunities, and organising bilateral visits for business leaders associated with economic, trade and investment forums between the two countries.

Oil prices rose by nearly 3 per cent on Wednesday on the back of supply concerns after reports of disruption in Libya's largest oilfield as well as the continuing attacks in the Red Sea. "Strong supply growth was one factor dragging fossil-fuel prices lower in 2023," UBS strategists said in a note on Wednesday. "Looking back at 2023, oil prices ended lower than we had expected. However, despite Opec+ removing output from May onwards, the oil market was "less undersupplied in the second half of 2023 than we had expected". Supply growth outside Opec+ was also strong, with total production up by about 1.8 million bpd in 2023.

Indonesia will face Libya at the Titanic Mardan Stadium on Thursday in another friendly clash between the two sides. They were thrashed 4-0 by their midweek opponents in a friendly clash on Tuesday and will now aim to put out a much better showing in Thursday's rematch. Indonesia vs Libya Head-to-Head and Key NumbersThere have been three meetings between the two teams, with the African nation winning all three matchups by an aggregate scoreline of 10-1. Indonesia are without a clean sheet in their last three matches after recording four in their five games prior. Indonesia vs Libya PredictionIndonesia are on a three-game winless streak, with two of those games ending in defeat after losing just one of their seven games prior.