Posted on 11/16/2015 7:34:10 AM PST by bananaman22
Russia’s central bank recently warned about the growing financial risks to the Russian economy from Saudi Arabia encroaching upon its traditional export market for crude oil. Russia sends 70 percent of its oil to Europe, but Saudi Arabia has been making inroads in the European market amid the oil price downturn.
The result is a heavier discount for Russia’s crude oil, the so-called Urals blend. Bloomberg reported that the Urals typically lands in Rotterdam, a major European destination, at a discount to Brent of around $2 or less. But the discount has widened to $3.50 lately due to increased competition from Saudi Arabia. “Oil supplies to Europe from Saudi Arabia are probably adversely affecting Urals prices,†the Russian central bank warned in a recent report.
Russian officials have accused Saudi Arabia of “dumping†its oil in Europe, a move that Rosneft chief Igor Sechin said would “backfire.â€
(Excerpt) Read more at oilprice.com ...
Russia’s economy is almost entirely based on oil. The Saudis can cause massive problems for Putin by under selling in their markets and weaning Europe off Russian oil. Now if they could only get natural gas to Europe too.
Russia is already in Syria. Wouldn't take much for their planes to accidentally stray off course and bomb the wrong strategic oil field.
WHOOPS!!!
Hey look...oil prices rose!
Why'd that happen?
“Russia is already in Syria. Wouldn’t take much for their planes to accidentally stray off course and bomb the wrong strategic oil field.”
That would be a suicide mission against the Saudi air defense system.
It's not as if Arabs don't have a preponderance to over estimate their abilities. Give them a new toy and they have more swagger than John Wayne.
I doubt the Ruskies would be any more deterred by it than we would (If we had a rational leader)
Well, at least we now know why Obama won’t open Keystone.
It would be good for the US.
(and maybe the money he gets from Buffett.)
Russia has a diverse economy where oil plays a large part. They took 20 million casualties and drove the Nazis from Russia
Saudi Arabia runs a both brutal and effete Muslim welfare state which depends 100% on oil to keep their 3000 princes supplied with whores and keep the Sheeple from rioting
I’ll bet on the Saudis cracking first
I agree.
mrs riverdawg once told me that when she was at Sheppard AFB in the 1990s, many of the foreign pilots who trained there were Saudis. They got the same training on the same equipment that our guys did.
Go Russia!
OPEC Has Already Turned to the Euro
GoldMoney Alert
February 18, 2004
...The source for the euro exchange rate is the Federal Reserve, and I have calculated the euro's average exchange rate to the dollar for each year based on daily data.We can see from column (4) in the above table that in 2001, each barrel of imported crude oil cost $21.40 on average for that year. But by 2003 the average price of a barrel of crude oil had risen 26.0% to $26.97 per barrel. However, the important point is shown in column (6). Note that the price of crude oil in terms of euros is essentially unchanged throughout this 3-year period.
2001
As the dollar has fallen, the dollar price of crude oil has risen. But the euro price of crude oil remains essentially unchanged throughout this 3-year period. It does not seem logical that this result is pure coincidence. It is more likely the result of purposeful design, namely, that OPEC is mindful of the dollar's decline and increases the dollar price of its crude oil by an amount that offsets the loss in purchasing power OPEC's members would otherwise incur. In short, OPEC is protecting its purchasing power as the dollar declines.
The Russian share of the EU hydrocarbon market is around 45%, and I'm sure it's even higher for natural gas. To remain competitive, OPEC has de facto priced in Euros for almost 15 years.
Iran, though under embargo for 30 years, was selling crude to customers like India to acquire foreign exchange, but has been a net importer of refined petroleum for perhaps half that long. The oil that India has bought in this way reduces the amount they need to acquire on the global market, hence the Iranian output won't have any immediate impact on global pricing or supply once the sanctions come off. As the Iranians upgrade fields and bring refining capacity back online, supply will increase, putting further downward pressure on pricing, at least until there's a real economic boom (if ever).
The fake treaty (the surrender document) Lurch negotiated [sic] with Iran precipitated Putin's at-long-last direct intervention in Syria -- four years into the chaos and slaughter. As if orchestrated [koff koff] hundreds or perhaps thousands of jihadists entered or returned to Europe and began to destabilize the society. Putin's been holding out a vial of polonium shaped like an olive branch ever since.
You work for Russia Today?
I’ll take Russia over Saudi Arabia any day. How about you?
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