Asia's oil producers reject call to cut output<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Reuters): Some of Asia's main oil producers have
\nrejected calls by the world's biggest exporters to cut output in
\na bid to raise sunken prices.<\/p>\n
The lone voice of support has come from Indonesia -- Asia's
\nonly member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
\nCountries (OPEC).<\/p>\n
\"In principle we agree on the effort to improve oil prices,\"
\nIndonesian Mines and Energy Minister Kuntoro Mangkusubroto told
\nreporters on Tuesday. \"We don't want to be different from other
\nproducers, in the interests of the spirit of togetherness.\"<\/p>\n
However, China, Malaysia and Vietnam, with combined daily
\nproduction of more than four million barrels per day (bpd), have
\nrefused to cut production.<\/p>\n
Late last week major producers meeting in The Hague, including
\nOPEC's Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela and non-OPEC Mexico,
\nagreed to cut more than two million bpd from supplies to help
\nraise oil prices.<\/p>\n
The cuts are planned to start April 1 and come on top of
\nexisting pledges from oil suppliers to cut more than three
\nmillion bpd.<\/p>\n
The participants at The Hague meeting have called on all
\nproducers to help in efforts to tighten global supplies.<\/p>\n
Norway, major exporter, has agreed to cut production. Oman has
\nagreed to cut production also.<\/p>\n
The latest round of cuts represent about 2.5 percent of world
\nsupplies, but the news has failed to lift oil prices by much.<\/p>\n
Since the announcement, New York Mercantile Exchange April
\ncrude futures have fallen a few cents, while Brent April crude
\nfutures are up just 30 cents.<\/p>\n
Brent settled on the Singapore International Monetary Exchange
\n(SIMEX) on Tuesday at $12.60 per barrel, up just four cents from
\nFriday.<\/p>\n
Brent averaged just $13.34 per barrel last year -- the lowest
\naverage price for more than 20 years -- and the spur to the
\nlatest round of production cuts.<\/p>\n
In China, oil officials said the country's main producers,
\nChina National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and China Petrochemical Corp
\n(Sinopec) would not be making any special effort to join in the
\ncuts outlined in the Hague pact.<\/p>\n
However, they said CNPC plans to cut back one million tonnes
\nof production during 1999 and Sinopec plans to cut as much as 1.5
\nmillion tonnes by shutting in uneconomical oil wells.<\/p>\n
China produced 162.6 million tonnes of crude in 1998, but was
\na net importer to the tune of 11.7 million tonnes.<\/p>\n
Vietnam, which produces 250,000 bpd, almost entirely for
\nexport, said its production was too small to make a difference.<\/p>\n
\"So if we increase or reduce by several thousand barrels, it
\nis not significant,\" said Ho Si Thoang, chairman of the board of
\nPetroVietnam, the state oil company.<\/p>\n
A spokesman for Malaysian state oil firm Petronas said on
\nTuesday a cut in its 630,000 bpd production \"will not have a
\nsignificant impact on the market\".<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asias-oil-producers-reject-call-to-cut-output-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}