NEW YORK (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia made deep cuts to its monthly oil prices for European buyers on Monday, a move that analysts said reflects the kingdom's deepening defense of market share, while it trimmed prices for U.S. refiners and increasing rates for Asia
State oil firm Saudi Aramco cut the official selling price (OSP) for its Arab Light crude to Northwest Europe by $1.50 for February, putting it at a discount of $4.65 a barrel to the Brent Weighted Average (BWAVE), the lowest since 2009.
“The moves are reinforcing that the Saudis just don’t intend to do anything to rebalance (price) levels. They want to maintain market share," said Gene McGillian, senior analyst at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut.
Aramco raised its February price for its Arab Light grade for customers for Asia - the largest of its three major regional market - by 60 cents a barrel versus January to a discount of $1.40 a barrel to the Oman/Dubai average.
The Arab Light OSP to the United States, the fifth consecutive monthly cut, was set at a premium of 30 cents a barrel to the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI) for February, down 60 cents from the previous month. For a TABLE see:
The Kingdom's move to cut its OSPs has been perceived by many traders as a signal of its decision to abandon efforts to shore up falling crude oil prices and, instead, focus on maintaining its share of key markets. Some analysts, however, have said they see the changes in monthly differentials as a simple reflection of deteriorating market conditions.
One trader said that the cuts to Europe may be a result of trying to price out West African barrels from Europe.
West African crude oil exports to Asia are set to fall to around 1.69 million barrels per day (bpd) in January from 1.93 million bpd planned for December, a Reuters survey showed on Monday.
The level of West African exports to Asia for January is set to be the lowest since August and compares to a level of 1.86 million for the same month last year.
(Reporting by Catherine Ngai in New York and David Sheppard in London; Editing by Jonathan Leff)
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