China keeps hold on commodities reins

(MarketWatch) -- Oil and metals mining shares traded on a mixed note in the Asian markets Thursday, as analysts stressed that China remained a key force that will ultimately decide the fate of demand for most major global commodities.
And while economic growth in China appears to be improving, the outlook remains uncertain.

On Thursday, government data showed that the nation's economy grew a slightly better-than-expected 6.1% in the first quarter from a year earlier, after expanding 6.8% in the fourth quarter.

Overall, "China continues to walk a very thin tightrope" and growth remains "below the optimal level to avoid major civil unrest," said Kevin Kerr, editor of Global Commodities Alert.
But that also means that "demand for key commodities such as energy and agriculture, industrial metals and soft commodities will continue to be brisk in China as they try to stave off a major collapse by continuing to use every means possible to stimulate the economy and create infrastructure projects," he said.
"China will clearly be the driving force in commodities during this cycle and perhaps for decades to come," he said.

Read more at MarketWatch

European Stocks Drop, Paced by Hypo Real Estate, Depfa, Total, BP

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks fell, led by energy
companies and banks, after Citigroup Inc. lowered its
recommendation for the oil industry and Union Investment, a
German mutual fund manager, halted redemptions from a fund.

The Dow Jones Europe Stoxx Oil & Gas Index dropped to the
lowest in two months, led by Total SA and BP Plc. Hypo Real
Estate Holding AG, the mortgage bank spun off from HVB Group, and
Depfa Bank Plc also declined.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Oil holds above $76, supply worries support

(Reuters) - London Brent slipped 36 cents to $75.90. The North Sea benchmark reverted to a discount to U.S. crude last week on signs of lower crude stocks in Oklahoma.




Oil has rallied to within sight of last year's record high of $78.40, although the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has rebuffed calls from consumers for more crude.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

China Aviation Oil's Shares Increase by 10 Percent to Record in Singapore

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of China Aviation Oil
(Singapore) Corp. rose to a record in Singapore.

The jet-fuel trader's shares jumped as much as 29 cents, or
10 percent, to S$3.12 ($2.07) apiece on the Singapore exchange.
That was the biggest one-day increase since July 9. The stock
traded at S$3.06 at 10:02 a.m. local time.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Dollar hits low, stocks retreat on subprime fears

(Reuters) - The weaker dollar hit Asian exporters such as Canon Inc., with overall market sentiment also soured by losses on Wall Street and caution after China raised interest rates on Friday in another attempt to prevent the buoyant economy from overheating.




Oil prices fell from near-record highs after oil producer group OPEC expressed concern about the impact of high oil prices on the global economy, which traders saw as a sign it might decide to pump more oil. Gold held on to Friday's gains, benefiting from the weak dollar and heightened market uncertainty.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Iran's Oil Minister Says There's No Need to Call Emergency OPEC Meeting

(Bloomberg) -- Iran, the second-largest producer in
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said there's
no need for OPEC to hold an emergency meeting because markets
are well-supplied.

``There is no shortage in the world markets of oil and
there is no need for OPEC to hold an emergency meeting,''
Iranian Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh told the country's oil
ministry press agency Shana today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Yen Gains After Iran Asks Japanese Refiners to Use Yen to Purchase Crude

(Bloomberg) -- The yen rose after Iran asked
Japanese oil refiners to pay for Iranian crude oil in the
currency instead of dollars.

National Iranian Oil Co. asked the refiners to switch to
yen payments to counter the risk that dollar transfers may be
frozen by increased sanctions, according to a letter from the
oil producer obtained by Bloomberg News. Iran is Japan's third
biggest supplier of oil.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Dendreon, ENSCO, Noble, GlobalSantaFe, Innovo, Savient: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 9:30 a.m. New York time.

Oil-service companies: Merrill Lynch & Co. downgraded some
oil-service companies on concern that oil prices will fall and
producer demand will wane. Noble Corp. (NE US), GlobalSantaFe
Corp. (GSF US) and Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO US) were
cut to ``neutral'' from ``buy.'' Shares of Noble, the fourth-
largest U.S. oil and gas driller by market value, fell $1.64, or
1.6 percent, to $99.55. Shares of GlobalSantaFe Corp., the
world's second-largest offshore oil and gas driller, fell $1.67,
or 2.3 percent, to $72.16. Shares of Diamond, the world's third-
largest oil and natural-gas driller by market value, fell $1.84,
or 1.8 percent, to $103.49. ENSCO International Inc. (ESV US),
which was reduced to ``sell'' from ``buy,'' fell $1.63, or 2.6
percent, to $61.66.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Tullow Cuts 2007 Production Forecast on Drilling Delays, U.K. Gas Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Tullow Oil Plc, an explorer on three
continents, cut its full-year production forecast because of
drilling delays and lower gas prices in the U.K.

Tullow expects output for 2007 to average between 72,000
and 75,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, it said in a
statement distributed by the Regulatory News Service today. The
company said in March that average daily production this year
would exceed 80,000 barrels a day and that daily output may
reach 85,000 barrels by the end of the year.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Algeria's Oil Minister Says Crude to Rise to $72, OPEC Won't Cut Output

(Bloomberg) -- Algeria's Oil Minister Chakib Khelil
said he expects oil prices to rise to $72 a barrel as consumption
increases over the summer months and said OPEC won't cut
production at its forthcoming meeting.

``The increasing demand for refined products will lead to
more tension on refineries and crude oil,'' Khelil said to
reporters in Algiers today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil off 10-month high, upward march seen resuming

(Reuters) - Oil steadied above $72 on Tuesday after hitting a 10-month high the previous session, and analysts predicted increasing crude oil demand from U.S. refiners and technical factors would soon push prices higher.

A weak dollar, which fell to a 26-year low versus the pound, has also boosted some commodities, notably copper and gold.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Oil States buys Texas-based well testing firm for $44 mln

(Reuters) - The deal will add about 4 cents a share to Oil States's
earnings in the second half of 2007, it added.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Crude Oil Rises to 10-Month High on Tightening Year-End Supply Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a 10-month high on
speculation inventories will decline as demand increases later in
the year.

UBS AG, Europe's largest bank by assets, raised its 2007
forecast for West Texas Intermediate by 6.5 percent to $65 a
barrel from $61 because of low inventories and strong demand. Oil
use peaks in the fourth quarter, when refiners make heating fuel
for the Northern Hemisphere winter. Gasoline consumption in the
U.S., the world's biggest oil user, usually rises in summer.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Oil Rises to 10-Month High on Expectations of Stronger Demand for Gasoline

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a 10-month high in
New York and gasoline extended its three-day climb on
expectations that demand will accelerate with the summer travel
season.

Prices climbed above $70 for the first time since September
yesterday after an Energy Department report showed that U.S.
gasoline supplies fell last week as refinery operations rose.
Pump prices climbed to a record in May because of lagging fuel
supplies. Oil stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, where oil traded
in New York is delivered, plunged 5.7 percent, the report showed.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

ComScore, Data Domain, Merck, Park Electrochemical: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 1:10 p.m. New York time.

Oil Refiners: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. downgraded
shares of Valero Energy Corp. (VLO US), the largest U.S. refiner,
and Tesoro Corp. (TSO US), the largest refiner in the U.S. West,
to ``sell'' from ``hold'' because of valuations. Sunoco Inc. (SUN
US), the biggest refiner in the Northwest, was cut to ``hold''
from ``buy.'' Valero fell $1.55, or 2.1 percent, to $73.11.
Sunoco lost $2.07 to $78.26 and Tesoro retreated $1.98 to $55.93.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Herley, Impac, Merck, Nike, UniFirst, Trump, Web.com: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 11:40 a.m. New York time.

Oil Refiners: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. downgraded
shares of Valero Energy Corp. (VLO US), the largest U.S. refiner,
and Tesoro Corp. (TSO US), the largest refiner in the U.S. West,
to ``sell'' from ``hold'' because of valuations. Sunoco Inc. (SUN
US), the biggest refiner in the Northwest, was cut to ``hold''
from ``buy.'' Valero fell $1.62, or 2.2 percent, to $72.04.
Sunoco lost $2.36 to $77.97 and Tesoro retreated $1.92 to $55.99.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Iran Starts Rationing of Gasoline, Sparking Protests in Tehran's Streets

(Bloomberg) -- Iranians rioted in the streets of
Tehran after the government imposed rationing of gasoline, which
the country spends $5 billion a year to import.

Starting today, drivers will be allowed 100 liters, or about
26 gallons, of gasoline a month, Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh
said on state television. Taxis will get 800 liters. Lawmakers said
earlier this month drivers would probably get five or six liters a
day, 50 percent more than the program actually grants them.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil firm above $72, near 10-month high on Nigeria

(Reuters) - Oil prices ticked lower but held firm near 10-month highs on Tuesday after a general strike threat by Nigerian unions and further violence in the delta helped extend the market's gains to a fourth session.

London benchmark Brent crude edged 10 cents lower to $72.08 a barrel by 0214 GMT after touching intra-day peak of $72.25 on Monday, its highest since August 28.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Oil falls from 10-month high, supply risks support

(Reuters) - Oil fell below $71 a barrel on Monday after rising to a 10-month high last week on concern about low fuel supplies in top fuel consumer the United States.

Threats to oil supplies in Nigeria, the world's eighth-largest oil exporter, were likely to limit the decline for prices, analysts said. A general strike is due to start in Nigeria on Wednesday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Tullow Oil makes significant oil find in Ghana

(Reuters) - UK-based oil explorer Tullow Oil Plc said on Monday it had made a significant oil discovery offshore Ghana.

Tullow said in a statement that an exploration well hit a large hydrocarbon column. Industry sources said its size suggested the field is now likely to contain at least 300 million-400 million barrels of oil.


Read more at Reuters Africa