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Bloomberg The new head of Brazil’s state-controlled oil company criticised its history of government interference and vowed to pursue policies that will boost profit, echoing a wider pledge by President Jair Bolsonaro to reduce the state’s role in Latin America’s largest economy. Roberto Castello Branco, who was sworn in as chief executive officer of Petrobras, said he was “revolted” by …

Bloomberg Oil started 2019 with another price slide as weaker Chinese manufacturing data pointed to slowing demand in the world’s second-biggest consumer of the fuel and to growing risks of a global crude surplus. Futures declined 1.6 percent in New York after a turbulent 2018 that saw volatility soar in its final weeks as concerns over the US-China trade dispute …

Bloomberg The Canadian oil industry could be in for another turbulent year in 2019, depending on how some pivotal events pan out. Government-mandated production cuts and the potential startup of a key crude pipeline are among key developments to watch for this year. While the announcement of production curtailments by Premier Rachel Notley has succeeded in lifting Canadian crude prices …

ABU DHABI / WAM The investment of UAE’s banks in Saudi Arabia and Egypt reached AED87.2 billion ($23.7 billion)at the end of Q3 2018, representing 12.5 percent of the total assets invested abroad, which amounted to about AED693 billion in September of the same year. Figures from the UAE Central Bank show that the value of investments by UAE banks, …

Bloomberg Oil headed for its first annual decline since 2015, slumping more than 20 percent in a turbulent year that saw fears of supply scarcity turn to expectations of a surplus. Crude surrendered early gains on Monday and fell as much as 1.3 percent in New York, on track for the worst quarterly drop since the last oil market crash …

TOKYO / WAM Japan has imported 26.528 million barrels of crude oil from the UAE in November 2018, data released on Sunday by the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy in Tokyo showed. This accounts for 28.3 percent of Japan’s total crude imports, the agency that belongs to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, reported. Japan’s total crude oil …

Bloomberg The world’s biggest banks are reckoning on a rebound in oil prices next year as fears of a recession prove misplaced. The Brent benchmark will average $70 a barrel in 2019, according to a Bloomberg survey of oil analysts. Futures in London and New York plunged this quarter, with volatility soaring in its final week as crude tracked gyrations …

Bloomberg President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he’d spoken at length with Chinese President Xi Jinping and that “big progress” is being made towards a deal between the world’s largest economies. The agreement will be “very comprehensive” and will cover “all subjects, areas and points of dispute,” the president said in a tweet. Trump’s comment comes as a US …

Bloomberg The US may be exporting natural gas at a record clip, but that hasn’t stopped it from accepting new imports. A tanker with fuel from Nigeria has berthed at the Cove Point import terminal in Maryland, while a second ship with Russian gas is idling outside Boston Harbor. Pipeline constraints, depleted stockpiles and a 98-year-old law barring foreign ships …

RAS AL KHAIMAH / WAM Zaki Anwar Nusseibeh, Minister of State, stated that the memory of the country’s founder and the builder of its modern advancement, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, will remain with the UAE’s people. He made this statement during a dialogue meeting, titled, ‘Centennial of Zayed,’ which was held on Wednesday by the Emirates …