OPEC Deal Can Send Crude Oil Price Above Expectations -- Maybank Kim Eng

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 (Bernama) -- Crude oil price could potentially beat expectation following the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) deal to cut output to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day (bpd) from 33.7 million bpd currently. In a note today, Maybank Kim Eng Research (Pte) Ltd said the output cut deal was the first time since 2008. The research house said its current house view was for crude oil prices to average US$42.50 bpd this year and US$50 bpd next year. "Crude oil prices could potentially overshoot our expectations if production is cut," it said in a research note today. It said the refinery margins were expected to gradually improve through the fourth quarter of this year as demand picked up for middle distillates during the winter and holiday seasons. "On a year-on-year basis, we expect average benchmark gross refining margin to soften as additional capacity in Asia-Pacific and West Asia for financial year 2017 is anticipated to surpass that of 2016, even though supply is still short of incremental demand," it said. -- BERNAMA