Saudi Spot Oil Deal in China Seen by Citi a `Dramatic' Shift
- Saudi Aramco sells June-loading cargo to Shandong Chambroad
- Spot sale rather than new term contract `unusual,' Citi says
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Saudi Arabia made its first sale of oil to a small, independent Chinese refiner. What’s more significant to markets is that the world’s biggest crude exporter broke from its usual practice of selling via long-term contracts, according to Citigroup Inc.
The world’s biggest crude exporter sold a spot cargo to teapot refiner Shandong Chambroad, said people with knowledge of the deal who asked not to be identified as the information is confidential. The 730,000-barrel shipment is expected to load in June from state-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co.’s leased storage tank in Japan.