The discount on Western Canada Select crude oil to North American benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures narrowed in Tuesday’s trading session, according to data from brokerage CalRock on Wednesday.
WCS for August delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $13.40 a barrel below the U.S. benchmark WTI, CalRock said, compared to $13.65 on Monday.
* The discount remains significantly wider than it was in June, after traffic through the Strait of Hormuz picked up earlier this month, and due to the ongoing weakness in China’s import appetite, which is hurting demand for heavy crude globally, analysts say.
* Oil sands’ spring turnarounds and maintenance work from the second quarter of the year are now back online, adding supply to the market, according to analysts.
* Global oil prices climbed about 2% to a one-month high on Tuesday after the U.S. reimposed a naval blockade on Iran, which will reduce oil flows from the region through the Strait of Hormuz.
(Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston;)