Saudi Arabia raises July Arab light crude price to Asia to highest in 20 years: report

Saudi Aramco raised the official selling price for its July Arab light crude oil prices to Asia by $6.10 per barrel month-on-month (MoM), the steepest increase in at least two decades, Bloomberg reported on Monday.

The move came as part of Saudi Arabia’s strategy to support the oil market after the OPEC+ agreed to extend output cuts through July.

The increase represents a premium of 20 cents over the benchmark Dubai/Oman prices.

Saudi Aramco raised July pricing for all grades to Asia by between $5.60 and $7.30 a barrel, which compares to an expected increase of about $4 a barrel, driven by surging crude demand from China, the report noted.

Furthermore, the price increase shows the Kingdom uses all the tools available to it to rebalance the oil market after prices fell to negative levels in April. Other Middle Eastern producers are likely to follow the increase.

On June 6, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other producers, agreed to extend the current oil production adjustments until July.