off-the-wire

UPDATE 1-Russian Urals crude seaborne deliveries for China hit 7-mth high in Jan -traders, Refinitiv

Kitco Media
By Reuters
Published:
Updated:
Reuters
(Adds details) MOSCOW, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Seaborne supplies of Urals crude bound for China in January rose to some 230,000 barrels per day (bpd), the highest since June 2022, as demand for the grade from the world's largest oil importer showed early signs of a rebound, traders said and Refinitiv Eikon data showed. "China wakes up, and new buyers (of Urals crude) emerge every day. India is already taking (Russian oil) to the maximum, and if there is an increase in demand, it will be from China," a source with a major trading company said. Direct shipments of Urals from Russia's Baltic ports to China by 100,000-tonne vessels reached 500,000 tonnes in January, while ship-to-ship (STS) transfer points near the ports of Ceuta in Spain and Kalamata in Greece have reloaded some 420,000 and 80,000 tonnes on to vessels bound for China.


Direct Urals supplies from Russia's ports to China in the first 10 days of February rose to some 360,000 bpd, according to provisional data provided by market sources and Reuters calculations. Rising appetite for Urals in China in February, along with Russia's plan to trim oil output by 500,000 bpd from March, may limit the grade's discount to global benchmarks, market sources added.


Russia's monthly budget revenues from oil and gas fell in January to their lowest level since August 2020, reflecting the impact of Western sanctions on its most lucrative export, Finance Ministry data showed. Urals crude has been sold at deeper discounts following a European ban on Russian oil imports since Dec. 5, 2022. Crude refiners from dominant buyer India were securing a discount of between $15 and $20 per barrel on Russian oil on a delivered basis compared with Brent in January, down from minus $12-$15 per barrel in December, minus $10-$11 in November and minus $5-$8 per barrel in October. (Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Jason Neely and David Holmes)

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