Rigbuilders gain on crude rally

Singapore

SINCE Monday, shares of Singapore's leading rig-builders, Keppel Corporation (KepCorp) and Sembcorp Marine (Sembmarine), have gained off the recent rally in crude prices, but the fundamental supply-demand mismatch of the oil markets still persist, market watchers say.

The recent drop in US rig counts, coupled with announcements of capital expenditure cuts by oil majors and a tumbling US dollar, has fuelled the recent rise in oil prices. Since Thursday, Brent, the international benchmark for crude, has surged about 17.2 per cent to US$57.08 by 9:34pm (GMT+8) on Wednesday. Over the same period, West Texas Intermediate, the US crude benchmark, jumped 16.54 per cent to US$51.80.