Saudi Arabia will raise oil prices for Asian and American clients in September, indicating that the world’s top crude producer believes demand will continue to improve despite a considerable increase in COVID-19 cases in some of the world’s main energy importers, according to Bloomberg.
Last month, OPEC+, the oil-producing group led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, decided to increase output for the rest of the year in order to feed a market that most analysts believe is running out of barrels as the world recovers from the worst of the pandemic.
According to a statement, Saudi Aramco will raise its main Arab Light grade for Asia by 30 cents from August to $3 a barrel above the state company’s benchmark. This is less than the 50-cent increase reported in a Bloomberg survey. Aramco is raising pricing for other grades to the region by between 20 and 60 cents.
Sixty percent of Saudi Arabia’s crude exports go to Asia, with China, South Korea, Japan, and India being the top importers.
