WTI $47.12 -$1.57, Brent $48.84 -$1.33, Diff $1.51 +3c, NG $2.99 -14c

Oil price

With the US closed yesterday it was pretty quiet according to traders I have contacted this morning, prices above are what I think are about right consensus. Either way crude fell in that light trading and various stats are having an effect on the market.

The most important number was of course, 7.4%, that being the Chinese GDP growth which beat the whisper of 7.2% but came with the Chinese equivalent of a profits warning of ‘significant downward pressure’ on the economy. The other number was that the IMF reduced its forecast of world economic growth from 3.8% to 3.5%.

Petrofac

At long last the contract for Lower Fars has been awarded as Petrofac get notification of the first phase of the heavy oil development programme. With a total project value of over $4bn in partnership with CCC this will last for five years including operational set-up and tutoring KOC operatives. For PFC there is still lots of good news on the backlog front which bodes well for the future, in the present ahead of upcoming figures there are some operational issues to sort out and probably an impairment charge into the bargain.

Sundry

Schlumberger has bought 45.65% of Eurasia Drilling, Russia’s largest drilling company according to press for $1.7bn, the company have given SLB the option to buy the rest in three years time and will de-list from the LSE. Now I dont know much about sanctions but……………….

As I write Baker Hughes seem to have screamed past the whisper with earnings of $1.44.

Afren have confirmed that they are in talks with Seplat and the Takeover Panel have extended the time until 30th of Jan by when they have to put up or shut up. My spies tell me that Seplat have made a derisory share offer which Afren dont like the look of one bit, no surprise company aren’t returning my calls! BTW the clue is in the name…Takeover panel…

Azonto has announced that Rob Shepherd and Andrew Rose have resigned ‘with immediate effect’ and will just stay for a little while to bed in new management. More in due course I suspect.

A slight correction from GKP, I was lucky that it was only this! Fishkhabour is indeed only 120km from Shaikan but where they truck it to at present is Dortyol on the Turkish coast which is indeed 1,000km away which is why the pipeline looks so attractive, my apologies for misreading my own notes!

Finally there may be no blog tomorrow as I  am up at crack of dawn to visit Plexus in Aberdeen. Obviously much more after the trip but I remain a big fan. I will try to comment on the Genel trading statement which is due first thing.

That means that I will have to miss Dav-oh yet again, it has to be said that a day in Aberdeen beats three days in Switzerland all ends up but is about as expensive…Bo Diddeley will be there as will Katherine Garrett-Cox, CEO of Alliance Trust who is forgoing Dundee for the Alps where she says she ‘will do a months work in three days’ in her role as ‘Voice of the meeting’, having previously been a ‘WEF Young Global Leader’ in 2005, someone please tell me its not true…………………..At least she can dance with Pharrell Williams and will.i.am who are ‘social entrepreneurs’ if only the French had a word for entrepreneur as George Bush once said…

And finally…

So, yesterday I forgot to mention the high riding Saints who are towards the top of the Premiership, whatever happens its been better than forecast! Tonight is the semi-final of the Clueless Cup with Chelski at the HubCap Stealers but I think I have to do my hair…

Last night the Toffees couldnt finish off the Baggies which rather sums up their season and the penalty -miss- was a fiasco.

In the cricket England thrashed India will Finn getting a fifer and Jimmy getting four, chasing 150 odd was even for us an easy task and we won with 23 overs up our sleeves.