Middle East Crude-Cash Dubai edges higher on Totsa's buying

SINGAPORE: The Middle East market rose on Wednesday with oil major Totsa propping up cash Dubai prices by snapping up 14 out of 15 partials traded.

SAUDI ALLOCATES FULL VOLUMES

Saudi Arabia allocated full contractual volumes of crude to multiple Asian refiners in May, unchanged from the previous month, trading sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

But sources at two North Asian refiners said they plan to implement provisions built into term contracts that allow adjustments in monthly crude deliveries to reduce the allocated volumes by Saudi Aramco by 10 percent after the state-run firm set higher-than-expected crude prices.

China's Sinopec, Asia's largest refiner, said its request for a 40 percent cut in Saudi crude oil imports loading in May has been confirmed, an official from the company's trading arm Unipec said.

Saudi Arabia plans to keep its crude oil shipments in May below 7 million barrels per day (bpd) for the 12th consecutive month, the Saudi energy ministry said on Tuesday.