Crude Oil Falls a Second Day on OPEC Output Boost, Concern Demand Abating

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell in New York, heading
for its biggest two-day decline since July 24, after OPEC
increased output and on concern losses in the U.S. mortgage
market will slow economic growth.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries, excluding Angola, raised production last month by the
most since September 2004, a Bloomberg News survey showed.
Prices of commodities including copper in Shanghai and platinum
in Tokyo declined, and stocks in Asia fell, extending a global
slump, on speculation waning growth will slow demand.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Falls, Heading for Biggest 2-Day Decline Since June, on OPEC, Economy

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell in New York, heading
for its biggest two-day decline since June, after OPEC increased
output and on signs U.S. economic growth will slow, reducing fuel
demand.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries,
excluding Angola, raised production last month by the most since
September 2004, a Bloomberg News survey showed. Asian stocks
dropped on renewed concern losses in the U.S. mortgage market
will trim growth in the world's biggest economy.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Qatar Was OPEC's Wealthiest Per-Capita Exporter Last Year; Nigeria Poorest

(Bloomberg) -- Qatar earned $28,576 per citizen last
year from oil and gas exports, while Nigeria, Africa's most
populous nation, made $391, annual OPEC data shows.

The range reflects large differences in populations among
members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Nigeria's petroleum-export revenue of $52.5 billion was twice that
of the tiny Persian Gulf emirate.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy 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

European Insurance Stocks Fall, Led by Legal & General; ABB Advances

(Bloomberg) -- European insurance stocks declined,
led by Legal & General Group Plc after the company said flood
claims hurt first-half profit.

Legal & General, Britain's third-biggest insurer, fell the most
in four years. ABB Ltd., the world's largest builder of electricity
networks, led gaining shares after reporting earnings that beat
analysts' estimates. Petroleum Geo-Services ASA jumped after the
world's third-biggest oilfield mapping service said profit more than
doubled.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Crude Oil Falls a Third Day on Expectations of Higher U.S. Gasoline Output

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell for a third day in New
York on signs U.S. refiners are increasing motor fuel output
and speculation OPEC may pump more oil to meet year-end demand.

A government report tomorrow may show U.S. refineries
raised operating rates to a 10-month high, according to a survey
of analysts. Gasoline dropped 2.8 percent yesterday. The
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries may increase
output this year if needed, Reuters cited group President
Mohamed al-Hamli as saying July 22.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Falls a Second Day After Reuters Reports OPEC May Raise Output

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell after Reuters reported
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was concerned
about high oil prices and their impact on the world economy.

The group may pump more oil to increase supplies, though it's
unclear whether extra production will be needed this year, OPEC
President Mohamed al-Hamli said, according to Reuters. Reports that
Chevron Corp. started its refinery in El Segundo, California, last
week helped pull oil prices lower.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Australia's S&P/ASX Rises to Record High, Led by BHP, Woodside, Newcrest

(Bloomberg) -- Australian stocks rose, pushing the
S&P/ASX 200 Index to a record. BHP Billiton Ltd. and Woodside
Petroleum Ltd. led gains as metals prices rose the most in almost
six weeks and oil traded at its highest in more than 11 months.

The S&P/ASX 200 added 31.30, or 0.5 percent, to 6415.50 as at
10:26 a.m. in Sydney. About two stocks rose for every one that
dropped. A sub-index of materials stocks jumped 1.1 percent, the
best performer among the index's 10 groups.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Petroleos de Venezuela, Under Chavez, May Make Shoes, Ships and Grow Beans

(Bloomberg) -- Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state
oil company that controls the biggest reserves in South America,
may begin making shoes, building ships and farming soybeans as
President Hugo Chavez widens the government role in the economy.

Chavez has approved the creation of seven subsidiaries that
range from oil services to agriculture, according to a written
report to the company's management. The plan would make Petroleos
de Venezuela an even bigger force in the country's daily life and
put it in competition against companies from around the world.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Climbs, Led by Macquarie Bank, Woodside Petroleum

(Bloomberg) -- Australian stocks gained. Macquarie
Bank Ltd. advanced after it said first-quarter profit rose
``substantially,'' and Woodside Petroleum Ltd. rose after it said
second-quarter sales increased 14 percent.

``Macquarie was more positive than they normally are and
Woodside got a bounce after production came in as forecast,'' said
Troy Angus, who helps manage the equivalent of $2.1 billion at
Paradice Investment Management Ltd. in Sydney. ``Corporate
Australia is doing so well. With the strong domestic economy we're
likely to see a pretty robust reporting season.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Australian Stocks Advance, Led by BHP, Woodside Petroleum, Macquarie Bank

(Bloomberg) -- Australian stocks gained, led by BHP
Billiton Ltd. after metals prices such as copper and nickel rose.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. climbed after the oil producer said
second-quarter sales increased by 14 percent. Macquarie Bank Ltd.
surged after it said first-quarter profit rose ``substantially.''


Read more at Bloomberg 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

Crude Oil Rises to 11-Month High on Signs U.S. Refinery Demand Is Rising

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to an 11-month high in
New York on higher demand after OPEC ministers said the group
should maintain its restrictions on production.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries yesterday
raised a forecast for demand for its crude by 100,000 barrels to
31.1 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter. The U.S. Energy
Department will probably report tomorrow that crude-oil supplies
fell 700,000 barrels in the week to July 13, according to analysts
surveyed by Bloomberg News.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

OPEC can do nothing about high oil price: Qatar

(Reuters) - The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, supplier of more than a third of the world's oil, was ready to boost supply if the market needed it, Abdullah al-Attiyah told reporters.




"OPEC cannot do anything about it," Attiyah said. "The world is facing a shortage of gasoline and diesel, but not crude oil. If the market needs more oil, OPEC will do its utmost but it needs to be convinced that there is a shortage."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Rises, Led by BHP, Woodside on Higher Commodities

(Bloomberg) -- Australian shares rose, with the key
stock index heading for its fourth straight quarterly advance. BHP
Billiton Ltd. and Woodside Petroleum Ltd. gained after prices of
commodities such as copper and oil climbed.

``Commodity demand remains overwhelming relative to supply,
so there looks like there could be more upside for mining
companies' shares,'' said Atul Lele, who helps manage about $380
million at White Funds Management in Sydney.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Drops for Fifth Day, Led by BHP, Woodside, Paladin

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index fell for
a fifth day, its longest losing streak since March. BHP Billiton
Ltd. and Woodside Petroleum Ltd. led resources shares lower after
prices of commodities including copper, zinc and oil dropped.

Uranium producers Energy Resources of Australia Ltd. and
Paladin Resources Ltd. declined on concern prices of the nuclear
fuel may have peaked.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Sinopec Shares Decline After Chairman Chen Resigns for `Personal Reasons'

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of China Petroleum & Chemical
Corp., Asia's largest refiner, fell after Chairman Chen Tonghai
resigned. Declines may be curbed because Chen's departure may
have limited impact on the company's operations, analysts said.

The stock dropped as much as 2.5 percent to HK$8.82 and
traded at HK$8.97 at 10:33 a.m. in Hong Kong. Shanghai-traded
shares in the company, known as Sinopec, fell as much as 5.5
percent to 13.51 yuan.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

OPEC's El-Badri Rejects European Union Demand to Increase Oil Production

(Bloomberg) -- OPEC, the producer of about 40 percent
of the world's crude oil, rejected a European Union call to pump
more oil so consuming nations can replenish stockpiles and ease the
impact of supply disruptions from the Middle East and Africa.

``There is no shortage of oil, there is plenty of oil in the
market, the stocks are very high, they are above the five-year
average,'' Abdalla el-Badri, the secretary general of the
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said during a
meeting with EU officials at OPEC's headquarters in Vienna today.
``If we add more oil, it will not go to the refineries.''


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Petrobras Expects to Continue Negotiations With Labor Unions, Avoid Strike

(Bloomberg) -- Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Brazil's state-
controlled oil company, wants to continue talks with its workers to
avoid a strike that unions say would aim to reduce production.

``We expect the talks with the unions will continue, and we
will try to reach a negotiated solution with the workers,''
Petrobras Chief Executive Officer Jose Sergio Gabrielli said in an
interview today. ``We expect the strike won't take place.''


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Emerging Market Stocks Post Weekly Gain, Advance to Record on Rate Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- Emerging market stocks rose, heading
for their biggest weekly gain since March, as a U.S. inflation
report eased concern that higher U.S. interest rates would decrease
the allure of the riskier equities.

OAO Gazprom, the world's largest natural gas producer, paced
the gains after oil prices hit a nine month high yesterday.
Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Brazil's state-controlled oil company,
surged to a new high. The Morgan Stanley International Index of
emerging market shares rose to a record for a second day.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News