Oil production in the Middle East declined by 250,000 barrels per day in 2017 with the biggest drop in eight years coming coming from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE, according to BP's Statistical Review of World Energy.
Much of the decline has been a result of continued compliance undertaken by Saudi-led Opec as well as non-members led by Russia over the last year.
“The Vienna group had a target of 1.8 million bpd, but in practice the production cuts have far exceeded that with cuts totalling nearly 2.5 million bpd,” Spencer Dale, BP’s chief economist said at a press briefing in London.
Vienna-based Opec and its partners in the global oil pact have cut production since January last year and extended the agreement till the end of this year. The curbs have help bring down oil inventories to below their five-year average, according to Opec, and helped shore up oil prices to touch a three-year high of $80 a barrel last month.
BP’s annual statistical review, which serves as a bellwether for the global energy industry, noted in its latest report that global oil production rose 600,000 bpd in 2017 below the 10-year average for the second consecutive year. Tight oil flowing from the US at an average of 690,000 bpd as well as revival of output from Libya at around 440,000 bpd were the largest increases. Opec members Saudi Arabia and Venezuelan production registered the largest declines of 450,000 bpd and 280,000 bpd respectively.
The Middle East, which accounts for 34 per cent of global oil production and 45 per cent of all crude oil exports, saw oil consumption increase by 1.4 per cent, which was below the ten year average. Growth largely came from an increase in consumption in Iran of around 5.4 per cent to 1.81 million bpd, while consumption in the region’s biggest exporter Saudi Arabia reached 3.91 million bpd - its biggest decline of 0.5 per cent since 1995.
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Meanwhile, growth in oil output in the region saw biggest increases from Iran, which grew 8.2 per cent to reach 4.98 million bpd as well as Iraq, which grew 2.2 per cent over the last year to reach 4.52 million bpd in 2017.
Gas production in Iran, which has the largest reserves globally for the resource, increased 10.5 per cent, above the 10-year average of 6.3 per cent, to reach 223.9 billion cubic metres in 2017.
Gas fared better than oil in the Middle East, with overall regional production rising 4.9 per cent to reach 659.9 bcm, compared with 574 bcm in 2016.
Egypt, which BP includes as part of the African region, contributed to much of the growth from the continent, with output rising 22 per cent to reach 49 bcm, driven mainly by production coming online from its Zohr gas field in the Mediterranean. Iraq, which made several attempts to reduce flared gas emissions and revamp its power sector last year, saw the biggest increases in regional gas consumption, growing 21.2 per cent to reach 12 bcm. Gas production in the UAE meanwhile declined 0.2 per cent to reach 72.2 bcm.
Overall energy consumption in the region rose 3.4 per cent, below the 10-year average, driven largely by consumption of both oil and gas in Iran. Both fossil fuels accounted for 98 per cent of the regional energy mix and 95 per cent of power generation.
Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars
US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
Hidden killer
Sepsis arises when the body tries to fight an infection but damages its own tissue and organs in the process.
The World Health Organisation estimates it affects about 30 million people each year and that about six million die.
Of those about three million are newborns and 1.2 are young children.
Patients with septic shock must often have limbs amputated if clots in their limbs prevent blood flow, causing the limbs to die.
Campaigners say the condition is often diagnosed far too late by medical professionals and that many patients wait too long to seek treatment, confusing the symptoms with flu.
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder MHEV
Power: 360bhp
Torque: 500Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh282,870
On sale: now
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES
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Sevilla v Maribor
Spartak Moscow v Liverpool
Manchester City v Shakhtar Donetsk
Napoli v Feyenoord
Besiktas v RB Leipzig
Monaco v Porto
Apoel Nicosia v Tottenham Hotspur
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Basel v Benfica
CSKA Moscow Manchester United
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Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
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Director: Alfonso Cuaron
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Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
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Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
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