VOL. XLIII

No. 08

21 February 2000

SAUDI ARABIA

Saudi March Deliveries Reports Drive Tense Markets To New High

Demonstrating just how tense crude oil markets are in the run-up to OPECs March meeting, prices were driven to a nine-year high after reports emerged that Saudi Aramco had told customers it was cutting crude volumes delivered to the US, Europe and the Far East by 15-40% of normal contract volumes. This drew an immediate sharp response from the US followed by a denial by Saudi Aramco,...