News: EQE Med crude-Urals diffs stable, freight rates rise in the Black Sea

MOSCOW, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Urals crude oil differentials to dated Brent remained unchanged on Monday amid thin trading activity, while freight rates in the Black Sea rose slightly.

• Traders waited for the first Urals loading dates for January to be released later this week.
• Freight rates for 80,000-tonne cargoes for journeys from Black Sea to Mediterranean were up on Monday at 110 points Worldscale (WS), the highest level since Nov. 23, according to Riverlake agency data in Refinitiv Eikon. RL-BSEAMED-AF
• Weather has improved slightly in the Black Sea region compared with the last week, but delays in loadings were still in place and higher demand for vessels from the Baltic region lifted the rates, traders said.

PLATTS WINDOW

• There were no bids or offers for Urals, CPC Blend or Azeri BTC in the Platts window on Monday, traders said. NEWS

• OPEC on Monday raised its world oil demand forecast for the first quarter of 2022 and stuck to its timeline for a return to pre-pandemic levels of oil use, saying the Omicron coronavirus variant would have a mild and brief impact.