Oil prices jump to $136 on US inventory drop, China's oil imports up by double digits in first 5 months of 2008

Oil prices jump on inventory drop

www.chinaview.cn 2008-06-12 04:19:57  

    NEW YORK, June 11 (Xinhua) --

Crude futures surged Wednesday morning after a report showed the U.S. crude inventory declined more than previously forecasted.

    Light, sweet crude for July delivery rose 5.49 U.S. dollars to 136.80 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude futures hit an all-time peak of 139.12 dollars a barrel last week, but retreated on a strengthening dollar earlier this week and settled at 131.31 dollars a barrel Tuesday.

    The U.S. Energy Department revealed in its weekly report that the crude inventory dropped 4.56 million barrels last week, much more than analysts predicted. The department predicted in its monthly report released on Tuesday that oil consumption will fall by 240,000 barrels a day in 2008.

    Meanwhile, U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman told the press Wednesday that he will attend the meeting scheduled on June 22, which is set between oil producing countries and consumption countries to discuss the soaring oil prices.     

Editor: Mu Xuequan

China's oil imports up by double digits in first 5 months

www.chinaview.cn 2008-06-11 21:24:48  

    BEIJING, June 11 (Xinhua) --

China's oil imports posted double-digit growth in the first five months of 2008 as global crude prices more than doubled from a year earlier, the General Administration of Customs said Wednesday.

    The country imported 75.97 million tons of crude oil, up 12.7 percent from a year earlier, with average prices rising 64.1 percent to 689.9 U.S. dollars per ton.

    Imports of oil products jumped 17.3 percent to 17.34 million tons. Prices soared 66.9 percent to average 709.6 U.S. dollars per ton.

    Analysts said booming domestic demand, notably from the severe winter and quake reconstruction, fueled imports.

    Crude oil exports totaled 950,000 tons, valued at 570 million U.S. dollars, while exports of refined oil stood at 6.48 million tons worth 4.85 billion U.S. dollars.

Editor: Lin Li

PetroChina to issue up to 60 bln yuan of corporate bonds

www.chinaview.cn 2008-06-11 21:37:02  

    BEIJING, June 11 (Xinhua) --

    China's top oil producer, PetroChina, said Wednesday it plans to issue no more than 60 billion yuan (8.6 billion U.S. dollars) of corporate bonds in the mainland market to ease funding pressures.

    The total principal amount of the bonds was nearly half of PetroChina's net profit for 2007, which stood at 146 billion yuan.

    The company board made the resolution Tuesday and will seek approval at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on July 31 before getting the nod from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, according to a statement on PetroChina's website.

    The move was intended to "satisfy the operational needs of the company, further improve its debt structure, reduce financing costs and supplement working capital," said the statement.

    "The company has a huge demand for funds," it said. "It has planned expensive projects for the 2006-2010 period, while soaring world crude prices cause sharply higher windfall taxes and the government keeps domestic refined oil prices much below international levels."

    The proceeds from the bonds can also be invested in projects such as China's second west-east gas pipeline, said the company.

    With a total investment of 142.2 billion yuan, the pipeline is expected to send natural gas from central Asia and western China to the country's southern and eastern economic hubs by 2011.

    With durations of up to 15 years, the bonds will be issued in one or several tranches and may have the same or different maturities, said the company.

Editor: Lin Li

Indonesia to develop synthetic oil

www.chinaview.cn 2008-06-11 20:52:25  

    JAKARTA, June 11 (Xinhua) --

Indonesia will liquefy huge amount of coal to produce synthetic oil as one of efforts to cope with the soaring global oil prices, the country's energy minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said here Wednesday.

    Over one million barrels of oil would be produced each day, he said.

    The minister said that over 99 billion tons of coal would be liquefied annually.

    Currently, a pilot project had been carried out in Palimanan of Cirebon in West Java province and in South Kalimantan province, he said.

    "About 99 billion tons of coal will be turned into synthetic oil per year," he told a press conference after meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the state palace here.

    He did not give further details.

    Indonesia has abundant amount of coal. Indonesia, which has been hit by the soaring global oil price, attempted to boost its oil production.

Editor: Bi Mingxin

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