Western sanctions on Russia have made countries that aren't on good terms with the US acutely aware of how money can be weaponized and that appears to have rekindled Saudi-China talks on pricing oil in yuan.
The talks over pricing oil in yuan have been ongoing for six years but the WSJ reports that they've accelerated as Saudis "have grown increasingly unhappy with decades-old U.S. security commitments to defend the kingdom." The report says the Saudis want US support for their intervention in the Yemen civil war.
About a quarter of Saudi oil goes to China.
WTI crude oil is down $7.30 today in the second day of sharp declines to $95.66. A separate report says the US has signed off on provisions that would keep Russia-Iran trade out of sanctions in order to progress the JCPOA. Lockdowns in China are also weighing.
OPEC releases latest world oil report
OPEC sees 2022 world oil demand growth forecast largely unchanged, bumping it to 100.9m from 110.8mbpd. They say that challenges to the global economy could hurt demand in various regions and that covid concerns could also hurt. They hint that demand could be forecast lower later. The report also said OPEC added 440K bpd in February.
