WTI & Brent sit ~$0.15 above their respective...>

OIL: WTI & Brent sit ~$0.15 above their respective settlement levels, building

on Thursday's strong gains. Worth recapping that Tuesday's API inventory

estimate reportedly revealed a larger than exp. drawdown in headline crude

stocks, coupled with a drawdown in stocks at Cushing. Elsewhere, reports pointed

to a larger than exp. build in distillate stocks & a shallower than exp. build

in gasoline stocks. Elsewhere, Wednesday saw the Saudi energy minister note that

the Khafji field, which the Kingdom jointly operates with Kuwait, will produce

3230K bpd come the end of 2020. Also on the supply front, Russia revealed that

crude production excl. condensates was -240K bpd vs. the OPEC+ agreement base

through the first 24 days of Dec vs. a current commitment of -228K (this will

deepen in Q120). This comes after the Russian FinMin noted that the country sees

the risk of oil prices dropping to $25-$30/bbl unless OPEC+ continues production

cuts beyond Q120. Thursday saw RTRS sources report that China issued its first

round of crude oil import quotas for non-state entities for 2020, which saw a 8%

increase vs. the same time last year.

- Weekly DoE crude inventory & Baker Hughes rig count data will hit Friday.