China’s GDP growth ‘suggests quite significant smoothing of the data’: analysts China’s gross domestic product continued to grow at a steady rate of 6.7% for the third straight quarter. Government infrastructure projects and a booming property market spurred prices and demand for raw materials and goods, from cement and steel to furniture, reports Reuters. The third straight quarter of identical
Gas Demand Growing as Coal Prices and Exports Heat Up Henry Hub aside, the real hot commodity this summer has been coal, as spot prices for Australian thermal reached $100 per ton (ASD) in September for the first time since April, 2012. The country is the world’s second largest exporter of coal, behind Indonesia. This price spike has been spurred
Crude oil inventory build offset by refined product draw, supporting prices above $50 per barrel Both Brent and WTI crude prices are up after falling earlier in the day on expectations of a 3 MMBO crude oil build. The build exceeded expectations, with the U.S. adding 4.9 MMBO to its inventory according to the EIA, but prices recovered following the
New third-party estimates put Chinese strategic oil reserves at 600 MMBO, 366 MMBO more than official reports The actual amount of crude oil stored in China may be significantly higher than official reports indicate, according to geospatial analytics company Orbital Insights. Using satellite imaging, the company estimates oil storage in China, the world’s largest energy consumer, was at 600 MMBO
From Stratfor Summary Nearly eight months after the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was signed, its fate is still up in the air. While giving a speech in Havana on Sept. 26, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated his commitment to ratify the agreement before the end of the year. On the same day, Japan’s legislature convened for a 66-day special session to discuss, among other
China Leads the Planet in CO2 Emissions, but Persian Gulf States Lead on Per Capita Basis According to the World Bank’s current data, China was the leading emitter of carbon dioxide in 2011, outstripping the CO2 emitted by the U.S., India, and Russia combined. This should come as no surprise, as a country’s carbon emissions generally have a positive relationship
China’s crude oil imports at a four-month high as the country halts high-cost production Crude oil production from the world’s largest energy consumer hit a six-year low in August, according to information released by the National Bureau of Statistics Tuesday. Production in China fell 9.9% from a year ago to about 3.9 MMBOPD, the lowest since December 2009, according to
BP signs second shale gas production sharing contract with China National Petroleum Corporation International oil major BP (ticker: BP) said Thursday that the company has signed its second shale gas production sharing contract with China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC). The contract with the state-owned company covers an area of about 1,000 square kilometers at Rong Chang Bei in the Sichuan
The fist LNG shipment to China from the lower 48 states arrived last week, marking the official entry of the U.S. into the Asian LNG market. The shipment was chartered by Royal Dutch Shell (ticker: RDS) and originated form Cheniere Energy’s (ticker: LNG) Sabine Pass LNG facility in Gulf of Mexico. The cargo was purchased by China National Offshore Corp
Canada hopes to attract greater foreign investment with lower political risk and a skilled workforce Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau said that the country is considering relaxing rules on foreign investment in order to attract more capital and spur growth. Morneau indicated that these loosened policies may even include restrictions on the ability of state-owned enterprises to invest in Canada,
From Epoch Times China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. announced plans to sell half of its stake in a major trans-China natural-gas pipeline, in a bid to raise capital and fund exploration as part of China’s ambitious goal to wean itself off of coal. Sinopec, as the company is commonly called, is looking to divest 50 percent of its cross-country pipeline
From Geeskaafrika.com Ethiopia says physical work on a massive $4 billion cooperative natural gas project between Ethiopia, Djibouti, and China will soon be launched. The announcement was made Thursday by Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom at the opening of the 4th Ethiopia-Djibouti Joint Ministerial Committee Meeting in the capital, Addis Ababa. The project is made up of a natural gas
