Light, sweet crude oil prices dropped on the New York market Sept. 28 to settle below $52/bbl while Brent also fell to settle below $58/bbl for a second consecutive day in London.
Market participants are watching Iraq’s reaction to the referendum in which Kurdish citizens voted in favor of independence from Iraq. Observers say the vote might prompt a hostile response from Iraq’s central government and neighboring countries.
Such a response could disrupt the flow of about 600,000 b/d of Kurdish oil exported through a Turkish port. Meanwhile, Iraq’s central government called on other countries to stop buying oil from the Kurds.
Turkish President Recep Erdogan has threatened to block Kurdish oil exports transiting through Turkey.
“It is important to look at what Erdogan does,” said Helima Croft, chief of commodities for RBC Capital Markets. “If he is serious about this threat then we will see higher prices.”
Emily Ashford, Standard Chartered director of energy research, said, “Geopolitical risk looks like it’s back on the scene again.”
Energy prices
The November light, sweet crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange declined 58¢ to settle at $51.56/bbl on Sept. 29. The December contract fell 56¢ to settle at $51.87/bbl.
The NYMEX natural gas price for November dropped 4¢ to a rounded $3.02/MMbtu. The Henry Hub cash gas price fell 3¢ to $2.92/MMbtu.
Heating oil for October was down 1.4¢ to a rounded $1.83/gal. The NYMEX reformulated gasoline blendstock for October fell 2.2¢ to a rounded $1.63/gal on Sept. 28.
The Brent crude contract for November on London’s ICE dropped 49¢ to $57.41/bbl. The December contract was down 41¢ to $57.16/bbl. The gas oil contract for October was $550.75/tonne, up $4.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ basket of crudes for Sept. 28 was $55.59/bbl, down 48¢.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
