Dubai: Dubai oil, an Arabian Gulf benchmark for Asia, will sell at a narrower discount to Omani crude futures in July as the emirate set its formula at the highest level in four months.
The official selling price for Dubai crude loading in July will be set at a discount of 15 cents to the Oman futures contract for that month, according to a statement from the Department of Petroleum Affairs yesterday.
The Oman futures contract is the only product traded on the Dubai Mercantile Exchange, which announced the differential provided by Dubai's Department of Petroleum Affairs.
The discount to Omani crude narrowed from 40 cents in May and June.
Smallest
The discount is the smallest since crude from Dubai was set at 5 cents below Oman for February and March loadings. The final July price will be calculated on the last day of trading for that month's contract, when the Oman level is set.
Abu Dhabi increased its prices for crude lifted in March from the month earlier.
Some Middle East producers like Abu Dhabi and Qatar publish retroactive prices, while exporters like Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait publish forward-looking ones as differential to a benchmark.
Dubai's Department of Petroleum Affairs generally issues the price formula for its crude on the last Thursday of every month to apply to the closing three months ahead.
The Dubai Mercantile Exchange's futures contract sets the price for Oman's production.
