BAGHDAD / Reuters The head of Iraq’s state-oil marketer SOMO said that he expected oil prices to remain at current levels for the whole of 2018. “I expect oil prices to stay stable at their current levels at least until the end of 2018,” SOMO chief Alaa al-Yasiri told reporters at a SOMO event in Baghdad. “Oil price stability depends …

Bloomberg The Democratic Republic of Congo granted Total SA a one-year extension to a license allowing it to explore for oil along the Ugandan border. Total must meet objectives including developing a drilling program before the new permit expires January 26, 2019, Oil Minister Aime Ngoy Mukena said in a written response to questions. The company is also expected to …

Bloomberg China’s home prices rose in the fewest cities in five months in February, as the government’s almost two-year campaign to curb property speculation started to bite. New-home prices, excluding government-subsidised housing, gained in 44 of 70 cities tracked, compared with 52 in January, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Prices fell in 16 cities from the previous month and …