Since the outbreak of the new coronavirus pneumonia, life in Saudi Arabia has not been easy.
Saudi Arabia’s oil revenue fell 38.7% in September! what happened?
According to data released by the Saudi General Bureau of Statistics on November 25, the country’s export revenue in September fell to 53.3 billion riyals from 77.3 billion riyals in the same period last year, a drop of nearly 1/3. Among them, oil export revenue fell by 38.7%. In that month, Saudi oil exports accounted for 65.8% of total export revenue from 74% in the same period last year.
China was Saudi Arabia’s largest export destination in September, followed by the United States, and the United Arab Emirates ranked third. It should be mentioned that China’s crude oil imports in September were 48.482 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 17.55%. So far, China’s crude oil import volume in the first three quarters of this year has reached 416.02 million tons, an increase of 12.7% over the same period last year.
On the one hand, China is promoting the diversification of crude oil imports, and the share of Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports to China has been divided among other oil-producing countries.
As early as July, Saudi Arabia’s oil exports to China fell by 23.4% to 1.26 million barrels per day, making Saudi Arabia the third largest oil supplier to China, ranking behind Russia and Iraq. This is the first time in two years.
However, Saudi Aramco subsequently adopted a reduction and price increase for the Asian market, raising the price of all grades of crude oil to Asia in July by 5.60 The US dollar -7.30 US dollars, the largest increase in 20 years, this move undoubtedly affected the preferences of Chinese buyers.
On the other hand, due to the epidemic restricting transportation, repeated epidemics in the European Union, and weak market demand for fuel, Saudi Arabia’s oil revenue has also dropped sharply.
In addition, the oil economy is crucial to Saudi Arabia’s finances. In previous years, the country’s oil export revenue accounted for 80% to 90% of Saudi Arabia’s revenue. According to Russian media reports, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman recently stated that due to the plunge in oil prices this year, Saudi Arabia’s actual oil revenue in the 2020 budget will decrease by more than 100 billion riyals (approximately 175 billion yuan) to 410 billion riyals. you.
Seeing that times are getting more difficult, Saudi Arabia has also changed its strategy to try to win back Asian buyers. At the beginning of September, Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, will lower the price of light crude oil exported to Asia by US$1.4 per barrel in October, which is greater than the US$1 per barrel in September. This is the second consecutive month that Saudi Aramco has lowered the price of crude oil for Asian customers. Pricing.
At the same time, Nikkei Chinese reported on November 23 that Saudi Aramco has put the issuance of Chinese RMB-denominated bonds on the agenda. Corporate bond issuance information released by Saudi Arabia’s largest oil company in November showed that the company is likely to issue RMB bonds in the future, but the issuance time and scale were not disclosed.
More than that, Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman also stated that China’s economic recovery is of great significance to stabilizing the international energy market, and Saudi Arabia looks forward to continuing to strengthen cooperation with China. He also emphasized that there are huge possibilities for cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia, not limited to energy, but in broader areas. </p
