SINGAPORE, Nov 15 (Reuters) - QatarEnergy sharply cut
the term price for al-Shaheen crude oil loading in January,
trade sources said on Friday, in line with a recent fall in
Middle East spot premiums.
The January term price fell to 73 cents a barrel above Dubai
quotes, the sources said, down for a second straight month and
at a multi-month low. The sources declined to be named as they
are not authorised to speak with the media.
The term price for December cargoes was at a premium of
$1.93 a barrel.
For its January tender, QatarEnergy sold five cargoes at
premiums between 40 and 70 cents a barrel to Dubai quotes, the
sources said.
Japanese refiner Eneos ( JXHGF ) bought two cargoes, while
Exxon Mobil ( XOM ), TotalEnergies, and Unipec took
one each, they added.
Traders said QatarEnergy offered more spot al-Shaheen crude
in January as the term prices in some months this year were
higher than spot market levels, deterring trading firms from
committing to full-year supplies.
Spot premiums for Middle East crude have fallen sharply over
the past one month, weighed down by demand weakness in China,
the world's No.1 crude oil importer.
(Reporting by Florence Tan and Siyi Liu in Singapore; Editing
by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Abinaya Vijayaraghavan)