by This went from bad to worse but they don’t seem to pay much attention to it: Labor Market Conditions IndexHighlightsLast week’s employment report was very weak and is reflected in May’s labor market conditions index which came in at minus 4.8 for the fifth straight negative reading and the lowest of the economic cycle, since May 2009. April is revised 2.5 points lower to minus 3.4 which, next to May, is the second lowest of the cycle. These readings point to a fundamental shift lower for the labor market and are not consistent with a rate hike anytime soon. The index, experimental in nature, is a broad composite of 19 separate indicators and, as yet at least, is rarely cited by policy makers. So the Saudis, the price setter for oil, announced that they reduced their discounts (raised prices) vs benchmarks in a move that firmed oil prices. And it’s not illegal over there for insiders to buy oil ahead of the price increase. Saudi Arabia Lifts Oil Pricing in Show of Confidence on Demand By Anthony DipaolaJune 5 (Bloomberg) — Saudi Arabia lifted oil pricing for Asian and U.S. customers, a sign the world’s biggest crude exporter is confident that demand is finally eroding a global supply glut.State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co.
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This went from bad to worse but they don’t seem to pay much attention to it:
Labor Market Conditions Index
Highlights
Last week’s employment report was very weak and is reflected in May’s labor market conditions index which came in at minus 4.8 for the fifth straight negative reading and the lowest of the economic cycle, since May 2009. April is revised 2.5 points lower to minus 3.4 which, next to May, is the second lowest of the cycle. These readings point to a fundamental shift lower for the labor market and are not consistent with a rate hike anytime soon. The index, experimental in nature, is a broad composite of 19 separate indicators and, as yet at least, is rarely cited by policy makers.
So the Saudis, the price setter for oil, announced that they reduced their discounts (raised prices) vs benchmarks in a move that firmed oil prices.
And it’s not illegal over there for insiders to buy oil ahead of the price increase.
Saudi Arabia Lifts Oil Pricing in Show of Confidence on Demand
By Anthony Dipaola
June 5 (Bloomberg) — Saudi Arabia lifted oil pricing for Asian and U.S. customers, a sign the world’s biggest crude exporter is confident that demand is finally eroding a global supply glut.
State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. raised its official selling price for Arab Light crude in Asia for the second consecutive month, the first back-to-back increase since May 2015, to the highest level since September 2014. Saudi Aramco is the first Gulf country to give July pricing, and major producers including Iraq and Iran typically follow Saudi Arabia. Supply and demand are coming into balance, and oil prices will keep recovering, Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih told reporters in Vienna on Thursday.