China South America » Crude Oil

UPDATE: Arg/ Spain/ China Drama: Argentina pushes on with YPF expropriation

Benito — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:51:03 +0000

The saga continues. Read more by clicking the link below to access the full story direct from Reuters

(Reuters) – Argentine lawmakers took their first step toward nationalizing the country’s No. 1 oil company on Wednesday when a Senate committee agreed on the outline of a bill to put YPF under state control.

President Cristina Fernandez unveiled plans on Monday to seize a 51 percent controlling stake in YPF from Spain’s Repsol (REP.MC), sparking a chorus of condemnation from Madrid to Washington. Trade partners, already disgruntled by protectionist measures adopted by Buenos Aires, warned the move could hobble private investment in Latin America’s No. 3 economy.

Click here to read the article in its entirety direct from Reuters

FT reports Argentina swoop scuppers China oil deal

Benito — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:31:28 +0000

To respect the high quality journalism produced by the Financial Times I will honor their request not to copy and paste their content.

However click here to read about the soap opera that has become Sinopec of China’s attempt to buy 57% of Repsol of Spain, stake in Argentina’s oil company YPF (Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales) before it was nationalized by Buenos Aires.

Rare question and answer Xinhua Exclusive on China- Latam relations

Benito — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:57:12 +0000

Thank you Xinhua News. Please click here to access the article from Xinhua News.

China to deepen ties with Latin-America

2012-01-17 17:26 chinadaily.com.cn

Yang Wanming, director-general of the the Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, exchanged views with chinanews.com readers online on Tuesday afternoon.

Yang Wanming, director-generalof the Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, answers questions from chinanews.com readers online on Jan 17, 2012. [Photo/Chinanews.com]

Topic: China-Latin America cooperation in culture

Q: How do China and Latin America cooperate in the field of culture?

A: China has opened 32 Confucius institutes in Latin America, covering almost all Latin American countries. Both sides also send art troupes to visit one another and conduct people-to-people exchanges. Many Chinese people like their football, music and dances and engage in studying Spanish and Portuguese. Many Chinese books have also been translated into Spanish and sold in Latin America.

Topic: Cooperation in energy

Q: What’s the current situation with Sino-Latin American energy cooperation? Some people think China is plundering energy resources there and uses it as a way to curb the US.

A: China is trying to carry out comprehensive cooperation with Latin American countries and its efforts have been well welcomed by them. The cooperation not only benefits the two parties, but also contributes to global peace, stability and prosperity. It started late and is on a relatively small scale, but has been developing fast. China imported 20.73 million tons of crude oil from Latin American countries in 2010, which accounts for 8.7 percent of China’s total import in that year. Venezuela has become China’s 4th largest oil provider. The two parties will explore cooperation on new energy. It’s totally based on equality and mutual benefit and will do no harm to the third party.

Topic: US view on China-Latin America relationship

Q: The relationship between China and Latin American countries has developed so fast. What do you think of the feeling in the US to this?

A: In recent years, the independence of Latin American countries is growing and its economic growth momentum becomes more diverse than before.

The rapid development of China-Latin America relations is on the basis of mutual benefit and win-win for both sides and is within the needs of Latin American countries’ diversified diplomacy and development strategy.

It will not only benefit development of both, but also contribute to the world’s stability and development.

China and the US have already established a consultation mechanism on Latin-America, and through four different consultations, the two parties have enhanced their mutual trust on this issue.

And the US has repeatedly stressed in their consultations that strengthening relations between China and Latin American countries will be good for Latin-America’s stability and development.

Topic: Chinese workers kidnapped in Colombia

Q: It was reported that several Chinese employees were kidnapped in Colombia by unidentified armed militants. How are they now? Could you release some information about the rescue efforts?

A: Four Chinese workers were kidnapped by some unknown armed militants in Caquetá province in Colombia on June 8, 2011. We have urged the Colombia authority to spare no effort to carry on the rescue work under the premise of guaranteeing the safety of hostages. Since then, the Chinese embassy in Colombia has kept in close cooperation and contact with Colombia’s relevant departments. The rescue work has not finished yet, but the safety of the four hostages can be guaranteed. Chinese companies are facing more risks as they go global on a larger scale. We need to increase our political backup and diplomatic guarantee to them, strengthen the consular protection and safeguard their legitimate interests. Meanwhile we advise Chinese people in Latin America to improve their sense of safety and precaution.

Q: How about China-Mexico relations?

A: China and Mexico are both developing countries and are working at enhancing people’s living standards. They hold the same positions on many international issues and regularly cooperate on these..

China and Mexico have some trade friction over trade imbalance problems, but we hope both sides can deal with the problems reasonably and from a development point of view.

We hope both can take active measures to promote the diverse, comprehensive and healthy development of the two countries’ economic and trade relations.

February 14 marks the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Mexico. We believe the relations can become more comprehensive, steadier and healthier with the two countries’ joint efforts in the future.

Q: Can you talk about the relationship between China and Brazil?

A: Brazil is one of the biggest countries in Latin America and one of the emerging powers in the region. The China-Brazil relationship is one of the most important between China and Latin America.

In recent years, the strategic partnership between China and Brazil has made considerable progress. They maintain a good momentum of high-level exchanges and the political mutual trust is deepened.

Their economical cooperation is also deepening constantly, which has brought tangible benefits to people of both countries. Bilateral trade volume exceeded $80 billion in 2011. Investment cooperation in finance, energy, steel, and machine manufacturing has also made great progress, and is expanding constantly.

China and Brazil have active exchanges in science, technology and culture as well.

The cooperation in the fields of Earth resource satellites, agricultural technology and aviation is progressing continuously. And the cooperation in culture and education is also very close.

China’s Confucius Institute Headquarters opened two Confucius Institutes and a Confucius school in Brazil and Brazil’s important media institutions have sent many journalists to work in China.

China and Brazil are both developing countries and have broad and consistent interests on major international issues. The Chinese government attaches great importance to relations with Brazil and believes the two countries’ cooperation in various fields will make great progress with their joint efforts.

Global gloom places Latin America on alert – Financial Times

Benito — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 05:56:52 +0000

Interesting article written by John Paul Rathbone, Latin America editor of the Financial Times.

Every day Luis Castilla, Peru’s finance minister, says he lights a candle and “prays that China won’t crash”.

His prayers are echoed by many in a region that remains one of the world economy’s few bright spots. South America’s commodity-rich economies grew 5 per cent in the first half of this year. Last year, these new motors of the world economy added half a percentage point to global output.

But slowing Asian demand and plunging commodity prices have raised the spectre that South America, having largely escaped the 2008-09 Great Recession, may not be so lucky this time around.

Main point = Potential new financial crisis in the “Developed World” + slow down in China = Scared Latinos

Click here to read the full article direct from the Financial Times

James Baker III: China’s Rise No Threat

Benito — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 10:32:51 +0000

HOUSTON, March 24, 2011 — Former US Secretary of State James Baker III under President Ronald Reagan receives an award from the Asia Society and argues in his speech that American fear-mongering about China is “dangerously wrong” at Asia Society Texas Center’s 2011 Tiger Ball. (12 min., 24 sec.)

Also special thanks to http://wanderingchina.wordpress.com/ for first bringing this video to my attention.

Brazil’s highway to China

Benito — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 11:22:07 +0000

Highway to China

Indeed, the real purpose of our helicopter trip was to view Mr Batista’s latest project, a vast superport north of Rio, built with this customer in mind.

The centrepiece of the complex is a two-mile-long pier jutting straight out into the South Atlantic, which has been dubbed “the highway to China”.

[...] Click here to read the full article direct from BBC

China’s Sinopec buys Occidental’s Argentina assets for $2.5 bln

Benito — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 16:29:37 +0000

Reuters reports –

* To be Sinopec’s first upstream exposure in Argentina

* Deal represents fair price – analyst

* Occidental concessions in Argentina due to expire in 2017

* China average oil demand grew about 13 pct y/y in Oct

(Adds analyst quotes, deal history)

By Jim Bai and Farah Master

BEIJING/HONG KONG Dec 10 (Reuters) – China Petrochemical Corp, parent of Sinopec Corp , agreed to buy all of U.S.-based Occidental Petroleum Corp’s oil and gas assets in Argentina for $2.45 billion, marking the energy giant’s first foray into the upstream market in the Latin America country.

Sinopec’s move adds to a growing list of outbound deals in the natural resources sector by state-backed Chinese firms in the past two years as the world’s most populous nation scrambles to secure resources for its surging economy.

Click here to read the full article, direct from Reuters

Peru to set up sovereign wealth fund

Benito — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 13:57:57 +0000

Img courtesy of Wikicommons

Peru plans to set up a sovereign wealth fund, taking advantage of record foreign reserves and metal prices to finance investments in infrastructure and education, Finance Minister Ismael Benavides said.

The Andean country may tap its $44 billion in foreign currency reserves and tax revenue to create the fund before the President Alan Garcia’s term ends in July, Benavides said in an interview in New York today.

“We have not only reserves but extraordinary revenues from mineral exports,” the 65-year-old Benavides said, without providing details about how the fund would work. “We might come up with something in the first quarter next year.”

The fund would be modeled after a $12.8 billion fund Chile created in 2006 to hoard windfall profits from surging copper prices, Benavides said. Peru is the world’s largest producer of silver and second-largest producer of copper after Chile. Metals accounted for 62 percent of exports in the first half of 2010.

Click here to read the full article, direct from Bloomberg

China’s Kerui Group chooses Peru as its base for greater South American market

Benito — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 02:12:56 +0000

President of Shandong Kerui Group Holding Corporation, Yang Xian - Andina

Andina News Agency reports Chinese corporation Kerui Group has expressed its interest in entering the Peruvian market by setting up an oil and gas equipment plant with an initial investment of US$10 million.

This supports my long standing opinion that Peru is perfectly positioned geographically, politically and economically to emerge as “China & Asia’s gateway to South America.”

The President of Kerui Group Holding Corporation, Yang Xian, seems to agree.

“This venture into our market aims to meet oil equipment demands of countries such as Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia and Brazil.”

“Politics and economic activity in Peru is better than in other Latin American countries such as Venezuela. We can strengthen our presence in Latin America from there, that would be our next task.”

Yang made these comments during the visit of Peruvian entrepreneurs to 3rd China International Petroleum and Petrochemical Equipment & Technology Exhibition (CIPEE) 2010 taking place in Dongying.

Currently around 50% of Kerui Group’s annual production is exported to U.S. and other countries such as Canada, Saudi Arabia, India, Russia, Kazajstán as well as other 30 countries in Middle East, Asia and Africa. This marks their latest move to expand their market reach.

Sinopec to Invest $7.1 Billion in Repsol’s Brazil Unit

Benito — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 04:45:36 +0000

China Petrochemical Corp., the country’s second-largest oil and gas producer, will invest $7.1 billion in Repsol YPF SA’s Brazilian unit as the Spanish oil company raises funds to develop offshore projects.

Sinopec Group, as the company is known, will buy new shares in the Brazilian unit and will hold 40 percent of that division after the capital increase, Madrid-based Repsol said today in a statement. Shares in Repsol, which previously planned an initial public offering of the unit, jumped to a two-year high.

The acquisition is the second-largest overseas purchase by a Chinese company as the world’s biggest energy consumer snaps up fields to meet surging demand. Repsol has stakes in blocks in Brazil’s Santos and Espirito Santo basins and plans to invest as much as $14 billion there through 2019. It estimates the Guara and Carioca fields may hold as much as 3 billion barrels.

… Continue reading here direct from Bloomberg