Surpassing Russia, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has regained its lost status as top oil exporter to China in January 2016. However, China's oil imports eased during the month, while Russia suffered major drop in its exports. As a result, Saudi's market share rose to 15.9 percent highest since June 2015.
Western sanctions
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Credit rating agency Standard and Poor's said on Wednesday that China's over-priced and over-supplied property market and capital-starved Russian banks were likely to face further downgrades in the coming years.
Many Russians are buying dollars and hoarding cash, increasingly concerned by a slide in the rouble and wary of possible restrictions on bank withdrawals as President Vladimir Putin blames currency woes on speculators and the West.
Rosneft (ROSN.MM), Russia's biggest crude oil producer, may back out of a deal to buy Morgan Stanley (MS.N)'s oil trading unit because Western sanctions make it virtually impossible to finance day-to-day operations, three sources close to the state-controlled company said.
