Oil production cuts may be prolonged, so international oil prices rose on the 18th. Prospects for a possible extension of OPEC-led production cuts and signs of a decline in U.S. crude oil inventories.

By the end of the day, the price of light crude oil futures for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange had risen by $0.57, or 0.97%, to $59.09 a barrel. London Brent crude oil futures for May delivery rose $0.38, or 0.57%, to $67.54 a barrel.

The OPEC and its allies’supervisory committee met in Azerbaijani to assess the implementation of the agreement. The Commission said it would exceed its commitment to cut production in the coming months.

“As long as inventory levels are rising and far below normal levels, we will stick to them and guide the market towards equilibrium,” said Saudi Energy Minister Farih.

Marketers said that signs of falling inventories of crude oil in Cushing, Oklahoma, also supported oil prices.

Traders quoted data from Genscape, a market intelligence firm, as saying that Kuxin, the U.S. crude oil delivery company, had lost 1.08 million barrels of inventory as of Friday. Rising oil prices

On March 17, the PX Commodity Index was 72.00, unchanged from yesterday, down 29.69% from its peak of 102.40 points in the cycle (2013-02-28), and up 58.07% from its low of 45.55 points on February 15, 2016. (Note: Period refers to 2013-02-01 to date).

Recently, the domestic market price trend of p-xylene has been temporarily stable. Pengzhou Petrochemical Plant has been running steadily. Urumqi Petrochemical Plant has started 50% of its operation. Fuhaichuang Aromatic Hydrocarbon Plant has started a line. CNOOC Huizhou Refinery and Chemical Plant has been overhauled. Other units have been running steadily for the time being. The domestic market supply of p-xylene is normal. The market price trend of p-xylene is temporarily stable. The opening rate of PX plant in Asia is about 80%. On March 15, the closing price of p-xylene in Asia dropped by 10 US dollars per ton. The closing price was US$1084-1086 per ton FOB in Korea and US$103-1105 per ton CFR in China. More than 50% of the domestic units need to be imported. The decline of foreign prices has a negative impact on the domestic market price of p-xylene, and the price of p-xylene in the market fluctuates.

On March 15, the price of WTI crude oil in May fell to 58.52 U.S. dollars per barrel, or 0.09 U.S. dollars. Brent crude oil in May fell to 67.16 U.S. dollars per barrel, or 0.07 U.S. dollars. crude oil price slightly declined, which had little impact on the price of downstream petrochemical products, while the price trend of xylene market was temporarily stable. Recent textile industry volatility, PTA price trend temporarily stable 18 days, the average price of East China bid in the vicinity of 6500-6700 yuan/ton, as of 18 days domestic PTA start-up rate is about 84%, polyester industry start-up rate is about 80%, downstream production and sales rate has risen, but PTA market price is lower, it is expected that the later PX market price will remain volatile.

According to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to February 2019, more than 1.34 billion cubic meters of coalbed methane were produced by industrial enterprises of national scale, an increase of 11.9% over the same period last year, and an absolute increment of 160 million cubic meters.

Among them, the cumulative production of coal-bed methane in Shanxi Province is 950 million cubic meters, an increase of 8.7% over the previous year, and the absolute value increment is 0.9 billion cubic meters.

According to Bloomberg, the proportion of natural gas in China’s energy structure will double to 14% by 2030. With the increasing proportion of natural gas in energy consumption, unconventional oil and gas resources such as coalbed methane have great potential to supplement.

The 13th Five-Year Plan for the Development and Utilization of Coal-bed Methane (Coal Mine Gas) published earlier proposed that by 2020, two or three industrial bases for coalbed methane should be built; the extraction capacity of coalbed methane will reach 24 billion cubic meters, of which the surface production of coalbed methane is 10 billion cubic meters and the utilization rate is more than 90%; the extraction rate of coalbed methane is 14 billion cubic meters and the utilization rate is more than 50%; the installed capacity of coal-bed methane power generation is 2.8 million kilowatts. More than 1.68 million households are for civilian use.

Shanxi is rich in coalbed methane resources. In order to further accelerate the development of coalbed methane industry, Shanxi will fully implement the withdrawal mechanism of coal-bed methane mining rights in 2019. At the same time, it is decided that, on this basis, enterprises with insufficient investment in long-term exploration after acquisition of CBM blocks will be punished by raising the minimum exploration investment standard and the holding cost of blocks, and blocks with development conditions will complete production capacity construction within a time limit.

According to the latest data of Korean Customs, Korea imported 8.2519 million tons of power coal (bituminous coal and sub-bituminous coal) in February, 10.83% less than 9.2546 million tons imported in the same period last year and 23.49% less than 10.7849 million tons imported in January, the lowest since June last year.

Bituminous coal

In February, Korea imported 802.98 million tons of bituminous coal, down 7.95% and 24.48% respectively from the same ring.

In terms of different countries, South Korea imports the most bituminous coal from Australia, which is 301.27 million tons, up 45.07% year-on-year, but down 26.71% year-on-year.

In the same month, South Korea ranked second in imports of bituminous coal from Indonesia, with 26875,000 tons, an increase of 3.88% over the same period last year, and a decrease of 32.24% annually.

In February, South Korea’s bituminous coal imports from Russia ranked third, at 10111,000 tons, down 21.73% year-on-year and 10.66% year-on-year.

South Korean bituminous coal imports in the same month amounted to $671 million, down 26.9% from the previous month. Based on this, the average import price of bituminous coal in that month is estimated to be 83.6 US dollars per ton, down 5.41% from 88.39 US dollars per ton in the same period last year and 3.2% from 86.37 US dollars per ton in the previous month.

Sub bituminous coal

In February, South Korea imported 2221,000 tons of sub-bituminous coal, down 58.23% year-on-year and up 46.21% year-on-year. South Korea imported bituminous coal from Indonesia that month.

In February, South Korea imported 14.571 million US dollars of sub-bituminous coal, an increase of 74% over last month’s imports. Based on this, the average import price of bituminous coal in that month was US$65.6 per ton, down 3.36% from US$67.88 per ton in the same period last year, and up 19.03% from US$55.1 per ton in January.

anthracite

In February, South Korea imported 7819,000 tons of anthracite, an increase of 33.98% over the same period last year and an increase of 45.39% annually.

On March 12, the ammonium nitrate commodity index was 107.02, which was the same as yesterday. It was 9.63% lower than the cyclical peak of 118.42 points (2019-01-15), and 38.32% higher than the lowest point of 77.37 on October 31, 2016. (Note: Period refers to 2013-02-01 to date)

Recently, the price trend of domestic ammonium nitrate Market has maintained a low level. Affected by environmental protection control, domestic ammonium nitrate plants shut down more, and domestic ammonium nitrate plants started less. However, with the warming of the weather recently, the influence of northern air limitation disappeared. In addition, due to the complete shutdown of domestic downstream civil explosion industry, domestic ammonium nitrate manufacturers have more stockpiles and the price trend in the field has declined. As of the 12th day, the domestic ammonium nitrate market price negotiation was between 1900 and 2100 yuan/ton. Affected by environmental protection, manufacturers in many areas are now forced to limit production or stop production for maintenance and accept environmental protection inspection. The price trend of ammonium nitrate in the field is weak.

Recently, the domestic nitric acid price trend is temporarily stable, up to 13th day, the market price is 1560 yuan/ton. The stable trend of nitric acid price has little effect on the ammonium nitrate market, and the price trend of ammonium nitrate has slightly declined. The price trend of upstream raw material liquid ammonia has risen slightly, up to 13th day, the market price of liquid ammonia is 3143.33 yuan/ton. The rising trend of upstream raw material price has a certain positive impact on the ammonium nitrate market. Ammonium nitrate market price trend slightly lower. At the end of the peak season of the downstream civil explosion industry recently, the demand for ammonium nitrate has weakened and the stocks of ammonium nitrate manufacturers have increased, but the liquid ammonia market is on the rise again. The ammonium nitrate Market has slightly declined due to the bad market. Ammonium nitrate analysts believe that the price of raw materials in the upstream market has risen slightly in the near future, but the demand in the downstream market is not good. They expect that the market price of ammonium nitrate in the later period will decrease slightly.

Elliott Abrams, the chief envoy of the United States to Venezuela, said the United States was urging India to stop buying Venezuelan oil. Venezuelan oil is the main source of revenue for the Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government. Meanwhile, the Trump administration this week threatened to impose more sanctions on Venezuela to cut off Maduro’s financial lifeline.

Elliott Abrams said that instead of helping the regime, you should stand by the Venezuelan people. The Trump government has conveyed the same message to other governments and has made similar views to foreign banks and private enterprises that have business with the Maduro government.

Under pressure from India, the United States and its regional allies supporting Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido threatened to impose more sanctions to cut off Maduro’s government’s revenue stream and force him to step down.

Washington regards Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate leader, imposes sanctions on the country’s oil industry, and announces asset freezes and travel bans on senior Venezuelan government officials.

The Indian market is crucial to Venezuela’s economy because historically, India has been the second largest cash payment customer for crude oil in the OPEC country, after the United States. By imposing sanctions on Maduro, the United States handed over most of its revenue to Guaido.

Oil shipments to China, another major importer of Venezuela, cannot generate cash because they will be used to repay billions of dollars in loans from the Chinese government to the Venezuelan government.

The talks on Venezuela came as trade tensions between the United States and India intensified and the United States urged India to stop buying Iranian oil.

The United States plans to end preferential trade treatment with India. This preferential treatment allows duty-free imports of $5.6 billion worth of goods exported by India to the United States.

U.S. sanctions usually prevent U.S. companies from doing business with specific foreign governments or companies.

Seeking to prevent India from buying Venezuelan crude oil will be part of the so-called “secondary sanctions” strategy. In this strategy, Washington will punish companies that are not in the United States.

This strategy, and even the threat of using it, is crucial in Washington’s campaign to cut off pressure on Iran’s fiscal revenues. But it has also attracted criticism from foreign governments that the United States should not impose its policy decisions on companies in other countries.

John Bolton, the U.S. national security adviser, warned foreign banks this week that they might be subject to U.S. sanctions for hiding Venezuelan assets.

An Indian official said that the United States and India would hold diplomatic consultations in Washington next week to discuss whether India would agree to stop buying Venezuelan oil. He added that India “knows very well the position of the United States on Venezuela”.

Venezuela’s oil minister, Manuel Quevedo, attended a meeting in New Delhi in mid-February to seek to “double” its crude oil exports to India and increase Venezuela’s imports of refined products from India. He also said he was open to barter payments.

But Venezuela’s exports to India have remained relatively stable this month since the Trump government imposed sanctions on Venezuela’s state-owned oil company (PDVSA), which means Venezuela’s exports to India are far from enough to offset the decline in U.S. exports.

According to Refinitiv Eikon, Venezuela exported 297,000 barrels of crude oil directly to India every day in February, excluding crude oil first shipped to other ports such as Singapore or Rotterdam. India imported 342,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan crude oil in January, compared with an average of 340,000 barrels per day last year. This is far below India’s average daily imports of more than 400,000 barrels in the past, and is not enough to compensate for the drop in February imports from more than 500,000 barrels before the sanctions to 104,800 barrels.

India is also under pressure from members of the two major U.S. political parties. Republican Senator Marco Rubio said on Twitter February 13 that the purchase of Venezuelan oil by Reliance Petroleum, an Indian refiner, would undermine Guaido’s “legitimate government” and “lead to calls for a second sanction against Reliance Petroleum of India”.

Albio Sires, chairman of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives, wrote to the Indian Ambassador to Washington on February 12, expressing concern that Venezuela “tried to bypass the efforts of the United States, hold Maduro accountable and engage with one of our strongest partners in the process”.

In an interview at the end of February, Democrat Sires said: “We will start lobbying to see if India can stop buying oil from Venezuela.

Data show that Venezuelan oil accounted for only 4.2% of India’s total oil imports in January. Mooses Rendon of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington said Venezuela, like other major buyers such as Russia, was not a priority for India’s foreign policy.

“The United States has enough influence to get India out of its relationship with Venezuela,” Rendon said. That’s why America’s role here is crucial. ”

On March 10, the PX commodity index was 72.00, unchanged from yesterday, down 29.69% from the peak of 102.40 points in the cycle (2013-02-28), and up 58.07% from the low of 45.55 points on February 15, 2016. (Note: Period refers to 2013-02-01 to date).

Recently, the domestic market price trend of p-xylene has been temporarily stable. Pengzhou Petrochemical Plant has been running steadily. Urumqi Petrochemical Plant has started 50% of its operation. Fuhaichuang Aromatic Hydrocarbon Plant has started a line. CNOOC Huizhou Refinery and Chemical Plant has been overhauled. Other units have been running steadily for the time being. The domestic market supply of p-xylene is normal. The market price trend of p-xylene is temporarily stable. The opening rate of PX plant in Asia is about 80%. On March 8, the closing price of p-xylene in Asia dropped by 8 US dollars per ton. The closing price is US$1096-1098 per ton FOB in Korea and US$1115-11177 per ton CFR in China. More than 50% of the domestic units need to be imported. The decline of foreign prices has a positive and negative impact on the domestic market price of p-xylene, and the price of p-xylene in the market fluctuates.

On March 8, the price of WTI crude oil in April fell to $56.07 per barrel, a decline of $0.59. Brent crude oil in May fell to $65.74 per barrel, a decline of $0.56. The price of crude oil slightly declined, which had little impact on the price of downstream petrochemical products, while the price of paraxylene was stable. Recently, the textile industry has risen slightly. PTA prices have risen on the 11th. The average offer price in East China is raised near 6700-6900 yuan/ton. As of the 8th day, the domestic PTA start-up rate is about 80%, and the polyester industry start-up rate is about 80%. In addition, the hobby sales rate has risen. The PTA market price has risen, and the price of PX market is expected to remain volatile in the later period.

Commodity Name: Acetone

Market Price (March 11, East China):3500 yuan/ton

The main points of analysis: Last week, the domestic acetone market was weak, the overall market changed little, the market turnover was general, and the supply side was relatively adequate. The stock of acetone port in East China was 67,000 tons, up 4,000 tons from February 25, including 45,000 tons in West China and 22,000 tons in Hengyang. However, the downstream start-up was limited, and the upstream suppliers were low-priced frequently. Up to now, the price around Yanshan is more than 3600 yuan/ton, the offer price in East China is 3500 yuan/ton, and that in South China is 3600 yuan/ton. Business associations expect that the short-term market consolidation of acetone will be dominated by a discussion of about 3500 yuan per ton of acetone in East China.

Battery Terminal Market

According to the statistics of China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance, in February 2019, China’s power battery loading volume totaled 2.24GWh, an increase of 118.03% year on year, and a decrease of 54.81% year on year. Among them, the three-element battery loading was 1.85GWh, up 178.92% year-on-year, with a decrease of 46.47%. The lithium iron phosphate battery loading was 0.32GWh, down 4.78% year-on-year and 77.30% year-on-year. The lithium manganate battery loading was 0.04GWh, up 2163.49% year-on-year, up 19.30% year-on-year, and the lithium titanate battery loading was 0.03GWh, up 5.30% year-on-year, down 49.30% year-on-year.

In terms of power battery enterprises, in February 2019, there were 35 power battery enterprises in China’s new energy automobile market, 15 fewer than in January. The top three, the top five and the top 10 power battery enterprises have 1.64 GWh, 1.81 GWh and 2.06 GWh respectively, accounting for 73.16%, 80.82% and 91.95% of the total load respectively.

Upstream raw material price

Cobalt: The domestic cobalt price declines sharply, the volume of cobalt sulphate price increases below 60,000, and the price of cobalt chloride bottoms at 65,000. Affected by the downstream demand downturn, the price has further downward pressure.

Lithium salt: There is polarization in the lithium carbonate market. For large lithium salt factories, brand awareness and product quality stability rank first, orders are abundant and stocks are small, and prices remain firm. The lithium salt factories of other small and medium-sized enterprises tend to seize the market for themselves through price advantage. Therefore, the trading range of lithium carbonate is enlarged. Lithium hydroxide transaction is less, the domestic market demand is light. With the increase of trading volume, its price is expected to fall further.

Lithium manganate: Sales of capacity type and power type are not good. Poor sales of capacity lithium manganate are mainly due to overcapacity and near saturation of downstream demand. The demand for power lithium manganate is very small, the price of ternary materials is lower, and the doping amount of power lithium manganate is reduced.

Lithium Ferrophosphate: The supply of long orders is stable, the spot transaction is scarce, and the price is 5,000 yuan/ton lower than before. Ternary orders have remained stable and show no significant growth for the time being. Spot trading price of lithium cobalt acid declined with the price of raw materials. News: Lubon Industry Co., Ltd. announced that according to the company’s strategic master plan for the capacity of 20,000 tons of lithium battery cathode materials, through its wholly-owned subsidiary,  it has implemented the projects of 10,000 tons of lithium iron phosphate cathode materials and 5,000 tons of ternary cathode materials annually.

According to Bloomberg, Peru’s Ministry of Energy and Mining said copper production in January fell by 12.6% to 20217 tons, the lowest since July last year.

But Peru’s largest mine, Freeport’s Cerro Verde, has increased production by 10.1% to 43,594 tons. MMG’s Las Bambas mine produces 41692 tons of copper, up 31.4% from the same period last year. Gold production fell 9.4% to 10,463 kg from January last year. Zinc mineral production fell by 7.8% to 10,1604 tons.

Mining investment increased 48% year on year to $335 million. Anglo-American Resources Group, Antapaccay and Marlborore, owned by Glencore, ranked first. Mining employment was flat at 194,030 last year, but fell by 5.4% from last month.