Saudi Arabia unexpectedly raised the price of its flagship crude oil for Asian buyers on February 6 based on the market expectations for a recovery in oil demand, especially in the demand from China.
The Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), which is controlled by the Saudi government, announced that the official selling price (OSP) of Arabian light crude oil to be shipped to Asia in March was raised by 20 cents/barrel compared with February, which was $2/barrel higher than that to Dubai/Oman.