Middle East Oil Trades Little Changed Before Saudi Export Prices

Middle East crude oil premiums were little changed, after dropping yesterday, as refiners waited for official selling prices from Saudi Arabia.

Qatar Land for June loading climbed 1 cent to a premium of 2 cents a barrel above its official selling price, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Murban, produced by Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., remained at a premium of 11 cents a barrel, according to Bloomberg data.

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. is scheduled to publish its official export prices for May this week. Abu Dhabi National Oil yesterday raised the prices of all its crude exports in March.

Oman oil for immediate loading increased $1.04, or 0.9 percent, to $113.66 a barrel today, according to Bloomberg data. Dubai for loading in June was up 0.9 percent at $113.23 and Murban crude climbed 0.9 percent to $116.70.

Oman futures for June delivery fell 45 cents to $114 a barrel on the Dubai Mercantile Exchangeat 4:51 p.m. Singapore time, with 903 contracts traded. The settlement price was set at $114.40 a barrel at 12:30 p.m. Dubai time.

The Brent-Dubai exchange for swaps for May widened 3 cents to $7.33 a barrel, according to data from PVM Oil Associates Ltd., a London-based broker. The exchange for swaps for June increased 4 cents to $7.10.

(Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-04-05/middle-east-oil-trades-little-changed-before-saudi-export-prices.html)