Middle East sour crude down 1% on week but gains on Brent

Quantum Commodity Intelligence - Middle East crude oil benchmarks Dubai and Oman, both medium sour crudes, were around 1% lower in the week ending August 13, with prices retreating for the third consecutive week as demand-growth fears again weighed on market sentiment.

Dubai cash for October delivery was assessed Friday at $70.03/b (1630 Singapore time), down from $70.75/b at last Friday's close, or 1.02%, according to Quantum data.

The Dubai market structure, however, remains firm with the October/November cash spread at around $1.40/b.

Dubai cash fell versus North Sea benchmark October ICE Brent futures, with Brent/Dubai narrowing to +$0.85/b compared to +$1.06/b on August 6, and was at the lowest since February of this year.

DME Oman futures for October settled at $70.09/b at the Asia close, compared to last Friday's settle of $70.80/b. The October Brent/DME Oman spread was +$0.79/b, compared to +$1.01/b on August 6.

Meanwhile, light sweet Murban for September trading on Abu Dhabi's IFAD exchange settled at $70.33/b versus $71.00/b last week, down 0.94%.

The October ICE Brent vs Murban spread was $0.55/b versus $0.81/b last week, while Murban futures vs Oman futures for October was little changed at +$0.24/b.