PHOTO
24 May 2017
Oil prices rose on Wednesday, supported by increasing confidence that an OPEC-led production cut aimed at tightening the market would be extended through the rest of 2017 and the first quarter of next year.Brent crude futures at 0147 GMT were up 13 cents from their last close at $54.28 per barrel.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $51.58, up 11 cents.Both benchmarks have risen more than 12 percent from their May lows.
Moody's Investors Service downgraded China's credit ratings on Wednesday, saying it expects the financial strength of the world's second-biggest economy will erode in coming years as growth slows and debt continues to rise.
China's main stock index fell one percent, Asian shares also slipped, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan down 0.2 percent, despite modest gains on Wall Street overnight.
Egypt's stock market on Tuesday recovered some of the previous day's heavy losses while Gulf bourses were weaker as investors booked profits ahead of the Holy month of Ramadan, when trading volumes and liquidity often decrease.Cairo's index rebounded 1.1 percent after tumbling 2.5 percent on Monday, its largest single-day decline since Jan. 19, after the central bank unexpectedly raised interest rates by 2 percentage points to fight sky-high inflation.
The dollar held firm on Wednesday, having rebounded from 6-1/2-month lows against its major peers helped by a rise in U.S. Treasury yields, while the yuan eased after Moody's cut its sovereign rating on China due to concerns over the country's soaring debt.
Gold held steady early on Wednesday, after falling 0.7 percent in the previous session, as investors waited for cues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate hike stance from minutes of the central bank's latest meeting, due later in the day.
In the latest news, OPEC members Saudi Arabia and Algeria support extending oil output cuts by nine months and welcome maintaining a cooperation framework with non-OPEC producers in 2018, the Algerian energy ministry said on Tuesday.The comment came after Algerian Energy Minister Noureddine Boutarfa met his Saudi counterpart Khalid al-Falih in Vienna ahead of an OPEC meeting on Thursday.
Egypt expects to raise 5-7 billion Egyptian pounds ($276-$387 million) through initial public offerings (IPO) of state-owned companies during the 2017-2018 fiscal year beginning in July, deputy finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk told Reuters on Tuesday.
For access to market moving insight, subscribe to the Trading Middle East newsletter by clicking here.
Oil prices rose on Wednesday, supported by increasing confidence that an OPEC-led production cut aimed at tightening the market would be extended through the rest of 2017 and the first quarter of next year.Brent crude futures at 0147 GMT were up 13 cents from their last close at $54.28 per barrel.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $51.58, up 11 cents.Both benchmarks have risen more than 12 percent from their May lows.
Moody's Investors Service downgraded China's credit ratings on Wednesday, saying it expects the financial strength of the world's second-biggest economy will erode in coming years as growth slows and debt continues to rise.
China's main stock index fell one percent, Asian shares also slipped, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan down 0.2 percent, despite modest gains on Wall Street overnight.
Egypt's stock market on Tuesday recovered some of the previous day's heavy losses while Gulf bourses were weaker as investors booked profits ahead of the Holy month of Ramadan, when trading volumes and liquidity often decrease.Cairo's index rebounded 1.1 percent after tumbling 2.5 percent on Monday, its largest single-day decline since Jan. 19, after the central bank unexpectedly raised interest rates by 2 percentage points to fight sky-high inflation.
The dollar held firm on Wednesday, having rebounded from 6-1/2-month lows against its major peers helped by a rise in U.S. Treasury yields, while the yuan eased after Moody's cut its sovereign rating on China due to concerns over the country's soaring debt.
Gold held steady early on Wednesday, after falling 0.7 percent in the previous session, as investors waited for cues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate hike stance from minutes of the central bank's latest meeting, due later in the day.
In the latest news, OPEC members Saudi Arabia and Algeria support extending oil output cuts by nine months and welcome maintaining a cooperation framework with non-OPEC producers in 2018, the Algerian energy ministry said on Tuesday.The comment came after Algerian Energy Minister Noureddine Boutarfa met his Saudi counterpart Khalid al-Falih in Vienna ahead of an OPEC meeting on Thursday.
Egypt expects to raise 5-7 billion Egyptian pounds ($276-$387 million) through initial public offerings (IPO) of state-owned companies during the 2017-2018 fiscal year beginning in July, deputy finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk told Reuters on Tuesday.
For access to market moving insight, subscribe to the Trading Middle East newsletter by clicking here.
