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SEB – Råvarukommentarer vecka 21 2012

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Sammanfattning: Föregående vecka

  • Analyser - Prognos på priser för råvarorBrett råvaruindex: -1,75 %
    UBS Bloomberg CMCI TR Index
  • Energi: -1,12 %
    UBS Bloomberg CMCI Energy TR Index
  • Ädelmetaller: -2,22%
    UBS Bloomberg CMCI Precious Metals TR Index
  • Industrimetaller: -0,98 %
    UBS Bloomberg CMCI Industrial Metals TR Index
  • Jordbruk: -3,09 %
    UBS Bloomberg CMCI Agriculture TR Index

Kortsiktig marknadsvy:

  • Guld: Neutral/köp
  • Olja: Sälj
  • Koppar: Sälj
  • Majs: Sälj
  • Vete: Neutral

Guld

Guldpriset - Utveckling januari 2011 till maj 2012

Guldet föll 1,9 procent under veckan. För första gången på länge ser vi ett betydande utflöde ur fysiska guld ETF: er. Samtidigt kan nämnas att under samma period som guldpriset sjunkit 20 procent sedan toppen 2011 har innehaven i världens största ETF, SPDR, stigit med tre procent.

Efterfrågan på guldsmycken i Indien förväntas sjunka för tredje kvartalet i rad efter att rupien försvagats till rekordlåg nivå mot dollarn.

Greklands f.d. premiärminister Papademos sa i veckan att det finns en betydande risk för att landet kommer att lämna euro-samarbetet. EU:s ledare blir allt mer medvetna om att försöken att rädda kvar Grekland i euron håller på att misslyckas. Helst ser man att Grekland behåller euron, så den politiska viljan finns, men fortsatt stöd förutsätter att Grekland följer överenskommelser om budgetmål. Allt görs nu för att få de grekiska väljarna att förstå att de i valet den 17 juni i praktiken kommer att rösta om euromedlemskapet snarare än om fortsatta åtstramningar. Guldet har alltså fortsatt stöd av Eurozon stress.

Skolbokens gamla ”sanningen ”ökad finansiell oro – guldpriset stiger”, ter sig alltmer avlägsen.

Den starkare dollarn har också bidragit till prisfallet i guld. Euron har letat sig ned mot den svagaste nivån mot dollarn sedan sommaren 2010.

Teknisk analys: Som tidigare gäller att så länge inte C vågens botten, 1521, bryts ligger vi i startblocken för nästa uppgångsfas. Givet närheten till huvudstödet krävs en noggrannare bevakning. Dessutom anser vi att nuvarande läge är ett intressant köptillfälle för den mer spekulativt lagde. Ett köp på nuvarande nivå med en stopp loss under 1521 ger också en angenäm chans/riskprofil, om man är positiv till guldet dvs.

Analys av guldpriset den 25 maj 2012

Olja

Oljepriset - Utveckling januari 2011 till maj 2012

Oljan backade 0,29 procent och spekulativa långa positioner föll till fyra månaders lägsta. Oljan befinner sig fortfarande i en ”soft spot” pga. överproduktion (Saudiarabien försöker pressa ner oljepriset för att öka trycket på Iran) och ett negativt makrosentiment.

Chefen för International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) har sagt att han förväntar sig att teckna ett avtal med Iran om att få inspektera landets kärnenergianläggningar. Onsdagens möte i Bagdad där Iran och FN:s sex permanenta medlemmar i säkerhetsrådet + Tyskland möttes blev tämligen resultatlöst och resulterade främst i en sammanfattning av läget och inget nytt för framtiden. Förhoppningar fanns om en lösning på Irankonflikten efter mötet i Bagdad. Enlig API steg råoljelager med 1,5 miljoner fat och är nu på den högsta nivån sedan 1990.

Enligt onsdagens statistik från DOE steg råoljelagren med 0,8 miljoner fat.

Enligt SEB:s analytiker kommer överskottet på olja att minska redan under det tredje kvartalet i år när efterfrågan ökar säsongsmässigt.

Orkansäsongen i USA börjar nu återigen utgöra ett hot mot oljeproduktionen i Mexikanska golfen.

I USA är det långhelg och Memorial Day firas på måndag och inleder amerikanska ”driving season” vilket vanligtvis leder till en ökad efterfrågan på drivmedel. På kort sikt anser vi emellertid att mycket talar för ett fallande oljepris.

Teknisk analys: I och med brottet av 233dagars medelvärdet utlöstes en ny medelsiktig säljsignal. Sedan dess har marknaden fortsatt att falla ned till 105.15-stödet där i alla fall en mindre rekyl bör uppkomma. Väl avklarad (sälj tillfälle) ska marknaden fortsätta falla ned emot 100/101 området där nästa huvudstöd återfinnes.

Analys av framtida oljepris den 25 maj 2012

Koppar

Kopparpriset - Utveckling från januari 2011 till maj 2012

Kopparpriset föll 0,44 procent under veckan och handlade som lägst på 7500 dollar. Spekulativa långa positioner föll till ringa fem tusen kontrakt. Positiva data från amerikansk husförsäljning påverkade inte kopparpriset. Försäljningen steg till en säsongsjusterad pristakt på 343 000 enheter vilken var mer än vad analytiker räknat med.

Igår påvisade kinesiskt preliminärt inköpschefsindex för tillverkningsindustrin för maj, ett index som HSBC publicerar, en kontraktion till 48,7 från 49,3 i april. Tillverkningsindustrin gick tillbaka mot bakgrund av svagare export. Kopparn faller i takt med den europeiska krisen eftersom Europa är Kinas största handelspartner

I Kina fortsätter fastighetspriser att falla. Enligt premiärminister Wen Jiabao kommer Kina fokusera framöver på att öka fokus på tillväxt igen. Detta skulle innebära en lättad penningpolitik, något som är positivt för koppar men på kortsikt är osäkerheten stor och vi tror att priserna kan sjunka något ytterligare.

Världsbanken sänkte utsikterna för Kinas BNP till 8,2 procent 2012 från 9,2 procent 2011. Siffran är högre än Kinas egen prognos som hamnade på 7,5 procent. Landet är nu på väg mot ett sjätte kvartal med fallande tillväxt.

Kopparn har fått visst stöd av uttalande från Codelco, som bekräftade att produktionen under första kvartalet är 10 procent lägre jämfört med förra året p.g.a. låga metallhalter i malmen.

Rykten säger att JP Morgan ska lansera en ETC med fysiskt koppar som underliggande vilket skulle kunna driva upp priset. Samtidigt har vi noterat att produkter med fysiska industrimetaller (alltså inte terminskontrakt) inte varit en kommersiell framgång än så länge.

Teknisk analys: Marknaden har nu också brutit under 7885 stödet och därigenom utlöst ytterligare försäljningar. Vi kan inte se annat än att fortsatt nedgång är att vänta och att vi härnäst tar sikte på nacklinjen, 6940, på den stora huvud skuldra topp formationen.

Koppar - Analys den 25 maj 2012

Majs

Majs - Prisutveckling januari 2011 till maj 2012

Även jordbruksprodukterna drogs med ner av det negativa marknadssentimentet och krisen i Europa.

Majspriset föll 7,5 procent under veckan efter prognoser om nederbörd vilka gett förhoppningar om att den nyplanterade amerikanska skörden kommer att bli god. USA är världens största producent och konsument av majs.

Fokus är på väderförhållanden de närmaste veckorna och enligt Global Weather Monitoring förväntas regn i flera amerikanska delstater där man odlar majs vilket alltså är behövligt och positivt för skörden.

Enligt USDA var 77 procent av amerikansk majs i ”good or excellent condition” den 20:e maj vilket är den högsta nivån sedan 2007. Sådden i USA är nu i princip avklarad, rekordtidigt. Kortsiktigt står vi fast vid vår negativa syn men skulle torkan istället hålla i sig är det onekligen ett riskmoment.

Teknisk analys: Reaktionen från botten in kanalen renderade en mycket kraftig studs, vilken, i alla fall kortsiktigt, förhindrat det potentiella ras vi tidigare varnat för. Dock gäller även framgent att dessa kraftiga svängningar gör kortsiktiga vyer utmanande varför vi rekommenderar stor försiktighet och en mer eller mindre neutral vy.

Analys pris på majs den 25 maj 2012

Vete

Prisutveckling på vete - mars 2011 till maj 2012

Vi har sett stora rörelser i vetemarknaden och vetepriset föll 1,16 procent under veckan som gått.

Föregående veckas prisuppgång berodde på torrt väder i Ryssland och USA. Det är även torrt i Kina, Europa och Ukraina. Den långdragna torka som varit hotar att orsaka en sämre skörd än förväntat. Matifvetet med novemberleverans steg med tio procent på rapporterna.

Nu innehåller nya prognoser regn i USA och Europa (även om t ex Tyskland, utom de södra delarna, blir utan regn) vilket fått vetepriset att falla tillbaka. Egentligen borde risken för torka avta eftersom omfattande väderstörningar (ENSO) är neutrala och onormala väderförhållanden (La Niña- Sydostasien och Oceanien får betydligt mer nederbörd än vanligt medan delar av Sydamerika får torka) borde klinga av.

Regn förväntas nu även i Ryssland och Ukraina vilket förbättrar förutsättningarna för skörden även där.

Kvalitén för höstvetet i USA, som rapporterades i måndags, ligger på 58 procent “good /excellent” och det är två procent lägre än förra veckan. Kvalitén har alltså fallit under 60 procent “good/excellent”. Det är en nedrevidering på veckobasis men betydligt bättre än förra årets siffror.

Skörden av höstvete är nu redan klar i Louisiana, vilket är rekordtidigt. Skörden är väsentligt mindre än förväntat.

Frågan är om priset på Matif vetet kommer att falla tillbaka i spåren av mer nederbörd, eller kommer nya rapporter om torka att få priset att vända uppåt. Vi förhåller oss neutrala till vetet under kommande vecka.

Teknisk analys: Den senaste uppgången (som tog sin början ifrån strax ovanför 233dagars bandet) gick lite väl fort varför vi nu befinner oss i en kortare konsolidering. Väl avslutad, vilket vi tror att den redan kan vara, bör vi se marknaden åter stiga upp till nya toppar (och till slut också kliva upp över toppen från förra våren).

Analys på vetepriset den 25 maj 2012

[box]SEB Veckobrev Veckans råvarukommentar är producerat av SEB Merchant Banking och publiceras i samarbete och med tillstånd på Råvarumarknaden.se[/box]

Disclaimer

The information in this document has been compiled by SEB Merchant Banking, a division within Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (publ) (“SEB”).

Opinions contained in this report represent the bank’s present opinion only and are subject to change without notice. All information contained in this report has been compiled in good faith from sources believed to be reliable. However, no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, is made with respect to the completeness or accuracy of its contents and the information is not to be relied upon as authoritative. Anyone considering taking actions based upon the content of this document is urged to base his or her investment decisions upon such investigations as he or she deems necessary. This document is being provided as information only, and no specific actions are being solicited as a result of it; to the extent permitted by law, no liability whatsoever is accepted for any direct or consequential loss arising from use of this document or its contents.

About SEB

SEB is a public company incorporated in Stockholm, Sweden, with limited liability. It is a participant at major Nordic and other European Regulated Markets and Multilateral Trading Facilities (as well as some non-European equivalent markets) for trading in financial instruments, such as markets operated by NASDAQ OMX, NYSE Euronext, London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Börse, Swiss Exchanges, Turquoise and Chi-X. SEB is authorized and regulated by Finansinspektionen in Sweden; it is authorized and subject to limited regulation by the Financial Services Authority for the conduct of designated investment business in the UK, and is subject to the provisions of relevant regulators in all other jurisdictions where SEB conducts operations. SEB Merchant Banking. All rights reserved.

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Analys

How renewable fuels are accelerating the decarbonisation of transport

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WisdomTree

On 16 November 2022, UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) Voyager aircraft, the military variant of the Airbus A330, took to the skies for 90 minutes over Oxfordshire. What looked like a routine test flight in its outward appearance was ultimately deemed ground-breaking. Why? It was a world-first military transporter aircraft flight, and the first of any aircraft type in the UK to be completed using 100% sustainable jet fuel.  

Mobeen Tahir, Director, Macroeconomic Research & Tactical Solutions, WisdomTree
Mobeen Tahir, Director, Macroeconomic Research & Tactical Solutions, WisdomTree

What are renewable fuels?

Renewable hydrocarbon biofuels (also called green or drop-in biofuels) are fuels produced from biomass sources through a variety of biological, thermal, and chemical processes. These products are chemically identical to petroleum gasoline, diesel, or jet fuel.

In other words, renewable fuels are sources of energy chemically identical to fossil fuels but produced from domestic, commercial, or agricultural waste (see Figure 1 below).

Figure 1: Converting waste into energy

Waste types and refinery output

Why the excitement?

Renewable fuels, like renewable diesel and sustainable jet fuel, can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 80-90% compared to fossil fuels. And because they burn much cleaner, engine filters remain cleaner for longer reducing the need for maintenance. Furthermore, given used cooking oil, vegetable oil, processing waste, and animal fat waste are used as inputs, the production of these fuels reduces biowaste, thereby cutting emissions from landfills.

This makes renewable fuels a key component of the circular economy. Humans have largely operated on the linear model historically when it comes to utilising natural resources. The circular model, in contrast, is much less wasteful and seeks to recycle as much as possible (see Figure 2 below).

Figure 2: The Circular Economy

Circular economy
Source: WisdomTree, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2023

The most exciting thing about renewable fuels is the immediacy with which they can make an impact. The reason why they are referred to as drop-in fuels is that they can replace fossil fuels in internal combustion engines with little or no modification required. So, if supply was abundant enough, forms of transport which cannot be electrified easily like heavy duty trucks, ships, and aeroplanes can be switched across to renewable fuels making a significant improvement to the environmental footprint. According to BP, “A return flight between London and San Francisco has a carbon footprint per economy ticket of nearly 1 tonne of CO2 equivalent. With the aviation industry expected to double to over 8 billion passengers by 2050, it is essential that we act to reduce aviation’s carbon emissions.”

The challenge

Renewable fuels or biofuels are still in their infancy. This means the obvious hurdle to overcome is cost competitiveness with fossil fuels. Cost estimates vary, but figures from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) provide a useful sense for the ballpark. In May 2022, IATA stated that the average worldwide price of jet fuel is about $4.15 per gallon compared to the US average price of a gallon of sustainable aviation fuel, which is about $8.67.

So, roughly double the price of the incumbent polluting technology. This is not a bad starting point at all. Considering how rapidly the cost of energy storage in batteries has fallen in the last decade, renewable fuels could become competitive quite soon if sufficient investment is made and economies of scale are achieved. IATA also predicts that renewable fuels could make up 2% of all aviation fuels by 2025, which could become a tipping point in their competitiveness.

Businesses are acting

Businesses pursuing their own net zero targets have already started exploring renewable fuels to minimise their waste. Darling Ingredients Inc, which produces its trademark Diamond Green Diesel from recycled animal fats, inedible corn oil, and used cooking oil, was chosen by fast food chain Chick-fil-A in March 2022 to turn its used cooking oil into clean transportation fuel.

Similarly, McDonald’s entered into a partnership with Neste Corporation in 2020 to convert its used vegetable oil into renewable diesel and fuel the trucks that make deliveries to its restaurants. According to TortoiseEcofin, both Darling Ingredients and Neste have a net negative carbon footprint given emissions produced by these businesses are lower that the emissions avoided because of their renewable fuels.

A final word

Renewable fuels alone will not tackle climate change. No single solution can. But they can help us make meaningful progress. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emphasises how crucial it is for the world to halve its greenhouse gas emissions this decade to at least have a chance of limiting global warming to 1.5oC. This means that solutions with an immediate effect have an important role to play. Biofuels can cut emissions from waste in landfills and provide much cleaner alternatives to fossil fuels to help accelerate the world’s decarbonisation efforts. They don’t require different engines to be of use. They just need funding to reach scale.

Mobeen Tahir, Director, Macroeconomic Research & Tactical Solutions, WisdomTree

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Analys

SEB Metals Weekly: China Covid exit is bullish for metals

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SEB - analysbrev på råvaror

China Covid exit is bullish for metals

Softer inflation, slight macro-optimism, and China taking a rapid exit from Covid restrictions. Markets have become more optimistic. Inflation indices have eased and that has created some hopes that central banks won’t lift interest to a level that will kill the economy in 2023. Natural gas prices in Europe have fallen sharply. This has suddenly reduced energy-inflationary pressure and removed the direst downside economic risks for the region. But general market optimism is far from super-strong yet. The S&P 500 index has only gained 1.9% since our previous forecast on 1 Nov 2021, and oil prices are down nearly 10% in a reflection of concerns for global growth. China has however removed all Covid-restrictions almost overnight. It is now set to move out of its three years of Covid-19 isolation and lockdowns at record speed. Industrial metals are up 20% and the Hong Kong equity index is up 40% as a result (since 1 Nov-22). China’s sudden and rapid Covid-19 exit is plain and simply bullish for the Chinese economy to the point that mobility indices are already rebounding quickly. SEB’s general view is that inflation impulses will fade quickly. No need then for central banks across the world to kill the global economy with further extreme rate hikes. These developments have removed much of the downside price risks for metals in 2023 and we have to a large degree shifted our 2024 forecast to 2023.

Lower transparency, more geopolitics, more borders, and higher prices and exponential spikes. The first decade of this century was about emerging markets, the BRICs, the commodity price boom, the commodity investment boom, and free markets with free flow of commodities and labor with China and Russia hand in hand with western countries walking towards the future. High capex spending in the first decade led to plentiful supply and low prices for commodities from 2011 to 2020. A world of plenty, friends everywhere, free flow of everything, and no need to worry. The coming decade will likely be very different. Supply growth will struggle due to mediocre capex spending over the past 10 years. Prices will on average be significantly higher. There will be frequent exponential price spikes whenever demand hits supply barriers. Price transparency will be significantly reduced due to borders, taxes, sanctions, geopolitical alignments, and carbon intensities. Prices will be much less homogenous. Aluminium will no longer be just one price and one quality. Who made it, where was it made, where will it be consumed and what the carbon content will create a range of prices. Same for most other metals.

Copper: Struggling supply and China revival propel copper prices higher. Unrest in Peru is creating significant supply risks for copper as the country accounts for 10% of the global supply. Chile accounts for 27% of global production. Production there is disappointing with Codelco, the Chilean state-owned copper mining company, struggling to hit production targets. The Cobre Panama mine in Panama is at risk of being closed over a tax dispute between Quantum and the government. Cobre Panama is one of the biggest new mines globally over the past 10 years. The rapid exit from Covid restrictions in China is bullish for the Chinese economy and thus for copper demand and it has helped to propel prices higher along with the mentioned supply issues. The Chinese property market will continue to struggle, and it normally accounts for 20% of global copper demand while China accounted for 55% of global copper demand in 2021. While China is no longer prioritizing the housing market it is full speed ahead for solar, wind, EVs, and electrification in general. So, weakening Chinese copper demand from housing will likely be replaced by the new prioritized growth sectors. Global supply growth is likely going to be muted in the decade to come while demand growth will be somewhere between a normal 3% pa. to a strong 4% pa. to a very strong 5% pa. Copper prices will be high, and demand will hit the supply barrier repeatedly with exponential spikes as the world is working hard to accelerate the energy transition. Copper prices could easily spike to USD 15-16,000/ton nearest years.

Nickel: Tight high-quality nickel market but a surplus for a low-quality nickel. Nickel production is growing aggressively in Indonesia. The country is projected to account for 60-70% of global supply in 2030. This will become a huge and extremely concentrated geopolitical risk for the world’s consumers of nickel. Indonesia has an abundance of low-grade C2 nickel. The challenge is to convert low-quality C2 nickel to high-quality C1. We are set for a surplus of C2 nickel but the market for C1 nickel will depend strongly on the conversion capacity for C2 to C1. Low price transparency will also help to send prices flying between USD 20,000/ton and USD 30,000/ton. Strong growth in nickel production in Indonesia should initially call for prices down to USD 20,000/ton. But Indonesia is a price setter. It will account for 50% of global supply in 2023. It doesn’t make sense for Indonesia to kill the nickel price. If the nickel price drops, then Indonesia could quickly regulate supply. There should be a premium to nickel due to this. As a result, we expect the nickel price to average USD 24,000/ton in 2023. C2 to C1 conversion capacity may be strained and there should also be a monopoly premium due to the size of Indonesia. Converting C2 to C1 is however extremely carbon intensive and that could be an increasing issue in the years to come.

Zinc: Super-tight global market. European LME inventories are ZERO and zinc smelters there are still closed. European zinc smelters account for 16% of global zinc smelter capacity. Most of this was closed over the past year due to extremely high energy prices. European LME zinc stockpiles are now down to a stunning zero! The global zinc market is extremely tight. Reopening of European zinc smelting seems unlikely in H1-23 with a continued super-tight market as a result both in Europe and globally.

Aluminium: Price likely to be in the range of USD 2400 – 3200/ton and line with coal prices in China. Aluminium prices have historically been tightly tied to the price of coal. But coal prices have been all over the place since the start of 2021 with huge price differences between Amsterdam, Australia, and domestic Chinese coal prices which are now largely state-controlled. China banning imports of Australian coal, the Chinese energy crisis in 2021, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 are ingredients here. This sent aluminium prices flying high and low. Coal prices in China today imply a price of aluminium between USD 2400/ton and 3150/ton with the LME 3mth aluminium price nicely in between at USD 2590/ton. The global coal market should now become more orderly as China now again is accepting Australian coal. Energy costs have fallen sharply in Europe and some producers in the Netherlands have talked about possible restarts of production. China is likely to reduce its exports of primary aluminium. Energy security of supply is high on the agenda in China, and it makes no sense to emit lots of CO2 in China and indirectly export energy in the form of primary aluminium. Growth in non-China aluminium demand in the years to come will have to be covered by non-China producers which have the potential to force prices higher and away from coal as the price driver. While LME has one price for the 3mth aluminium price we’ll likely get larger and larger price differences across the world in the form of possibly extreme price premiums for example in the EU and the US.

SEB Commodities price outlook
Source: SEB Markets – Commodities. Historical data: Bloomberg 
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Analys

Solid demand growth and strained supply to push Brent above USD 100/b

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SEB - Prognoser på råvaror - Commodity

Brent crude had a strong end of the year as it traded at the highest level since 1 December. It is a slow start to the new year due to bank holidays and Dated Brent trades close to USD 85/b. It averaged USD 99.9/b in 2022. We expect it to average more than USD 100/b on average for the coming year amid strained supply and rebounding demand. Chinese oil demand is set to recover strongly along with re-openings while non-OECD will continue to move higher. At the moment oil looks absurdly cheap as it is cheaper than natural gas in both EU and Japan and also cheaper than coal in Australia.

Some price strength at the end of the year. The Dated Brent crude oil price index gained 2.3% on Friday with a close at USD 84.97/b. It was the highest close since 1 December. This morning it is trading slightly lower at USD 84.8/b but the market is basically void of action due to bank holidays.

Bjarne Schieldrop, Chief analyst commodities at SEB
Bjarne Schieldrop, Chief analyst commodities, SEB

Gloom and doom but IEA, OPEC and US EIA project global crude oil demand to rise between 1 m b/d and 2.2 m b/d YoY in 2023. They also expect call-on-OPEC to rise between 0.3 m b/d and 1.0 m b/d. The US EIA projects demand to increase 1 m b/d in 2023 on the back of a growth of 1.3 m b/d in non-OECD where demand in India rises by 0.2 m b/d and China by 0.6 m b/d. In China this is of course to a large degree due to re-opening after Covid-19 lock-downs. But it is still a good reminder of the low base of oil demand in non-OECD versus OECD. India last year consumed 5 m b/d which only amounts to 1.3 b/capita/year versus a world average of 4.5  b/capita/year and European demand of 10 b/capita/year. Even China is still below the world average as its demand in 2022 stood at 15.2 m b/d or 4.0 b/capita/yr. Non-OECD oil demand thus still has a long way to go in terms of oil demand and that is probably one of the things we’ll be reminded of in 2023 as Covid-19 lock-downs disappear entirely.

Solid demand growth in the face of strained supply. Important to remember is that the world has lost a huge amount of fossil supply from Russia due to the war in Ukraine. First in terms of natural gas where supply to the EU and thus to the world has declined by some 2.5 m boe/d versus pre-war levels. Secondly in terms of crude and products. The latter is of course a constant guessing game in terms of how much Russian crude and product exports has declined. The US EIA however projects that crude oil production in the Former Soviet Union will be down 2 m b/d in 2023 versus pre-Covid levels and down 1.3 m b/d YoY from 2022 to 2023. We are thus talking up to 4.5 m boe/d of lost supply from Russia/FSU. That is a huge loss. It is the reason why coal prices are still trading at USD 200 – 400/ton versus normal USD 85/ton as coal is an alternative to very expensive natural gas.

Overall for 2023 we are looking at a market where we’ll have huge losses in supply of fossil energy supply from Russia while demand for oil is set to rebound solidly (+1.0 – 2.2 m b/d) along with steady demand growth in non-OECD plus a jump in demand from China due to Covid-19 reopening. Need for oil from OPEC is set to rise by up to 1.0 m b/d YoY while the group’s spare capacity is close to exhausted.

We expect Brent crude to average more than USD 100/b in 2023. Despite all the macro economic gloom and doom due to inflation and rising interest rates we cannot help having a positive view for crude oil prices for the year to come due to the above reasons. The Dated Brent crude oil price index averaged USD 99.9/b in 2022. We think Brent crude will average more than USD 100/b in 2023. Oil is today absurdly cheap at USD 85/b. It is cheaper than both coal in Australia and natural gas both in Japan and the EU. This is something you hardly ever see. The energy market will work hard to consume more what is cheap (oil) and less of what is expensive (nat gas and coal).

Latest forecasts by IEA, OPEC and US EIA for oil demand growth and call-on-OPEC YoY for 2023. Solid demand growth and rising need for oil from OPEC. 

Latest forecasts by IEA, OPEC and US EIA for oil demand growth and call-on-OPEC YoY for 2023.
Source: IEA, EIA, OPEC, SEB graph

Oil demand projections from the main agencies and estimated call-on-OPEC. More demand and higher need for oil from OPEC

Oil demand projections
Source: IEA, EIA, OPEC, SEB table

EIA STEO projected change in oil demand for different countries and regions YoY to 2023

EIA STEO projected change in oil demand for different countries and regions YoY to 2023
Source: US EIA, SEB graph

US EIA Dec STEO forecast for FSU oil production. Solid decline projected for 2023.

US EIA Dec STEO forecast for FSU oil production. Solid decline projected for 2023.
Source: US EIA data and projection. SEB graph

US commercial crude and product stocks still below normal

US commercial crude and product stocks still below normal
Source: US EIA, SEB graph

Total US crude and product stocks including SPR. Declining, declining, declining.

Total US crude and product stocks including SPR. Declining, declining, declining.
Source: US EIA, SEB graph

US crude and product inventories both excluding and including Strategic Petroleum Reserves

US crude and product inventories both excluding and including Strategic Petroleum Reserves

US oil sales from US SPR is now coming to an end. Will make the market feel much tighter as it really is.

US oil sales from US SPR is now coming to an end. Will make the market feel much tighter as it really is.
Source: US EIA, SEB graph

Brent crude oil is absurdly cheap as it today trades below both Australian coal and natural gas in both Japan and the EU. Coal and natural gas prices should trade lower while oil should trade higher.

Source: Blbrg data, SEB graph

EU diesel prices versus natural gas prices. Could start to move towards a more natural price-balance in terms of substitution.

EU diesel prices versus natural gas prices. Could start to move towards a more natural price-balance in terms of substitution.
Source: Blbrg data, SEB graph and calculations
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