Kuwait's OPEC Governor Nawal al-Fuzaia said on Thursday the oil market would balance itself but “we need to be patient”, indicating support for the producer group's policy of defending market share despite falling prices.
Speaking at the Gulf Intelligence Energy Markets Forum in the UAE emirate of Fujairah, Mr. Fuzaia said the current imbalance in the market stemmed from several factors and not just an economic slowdown in China. “The weakening demand in China, it is a short-term issue. I don't think that it will have an effect on OPEC market share,” she said.
OPEC shifted policy in November 2014 by deciding not to support prices by cutting output, in order to defend market share against U.S. shale oil and other higher-cost supply sources. North Sea Brent crude was down 65 cents at $49.10 a barrel by 1300 GMT, after hitting an early high of $50.14. U.S. light crude oil was down 46 cents at $46.69 a barrel.
Reports from London:
World stock prices held near three-week highs and the dollar fell on Thursday as investors awaited whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will end its near-zero interest rate policy.
In early U.S. trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 10.79 points, or 0.06 percent, to 16,729.16, the S&P 500. SPX declined 0.2 points, or 0.01 percent, to 1,995.11 and the Nasdaq Composite IXIC shed 8.01 points, or 0.16 percent, to 4,897.24.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index was little changed at 1,428.27.
Tokyo's Nikkei index ended up 1.4 percent.
