– This is the script of CNBC's news report for China's CCTV on June 22, Thursday.
Welcome to CNBC Business Daily, I'm Qian Chen.
Oil prices were slightly higher on Wednesday, before tumbling to a 10-month low during the trading session.
According to Vanada Hari, founder of Singapore-based energy consulting firm Vanda Insights, the bearishness has been spread from panic correction to a so-called "paranoia" selloff.
Therefore, some positive data barely helped to support oil prices overnight.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said crude inventories declined by 2.45 million barrels in the latest week, marking the 9th weekl decline in 11 weeks and exceeding expectations for a 2.1 million-barrel drop.
Meanwhile, Cushing inventories recorded a further draw of 1.08 million barrels on the week to 61.1 million. But the data supported prices only briefly before both WTI and Brent fell to its lowest intra-day level since last August.
Now the focus is on whether the OPEC is considering deeper cuts.
However, three other OPEC delegates in comments to Reuters dismissed the idea of a new cut.
One of officials close to OPEC said that he doesn't think the cartel will agree on further and deeper cuts unless Iran would accept being included in the cut.
[VANDANA HARI, Vanda Insights Founder] "They absolutely need to do act . It will cost them dearly if they are sitting on their hands. There's too much of stake, especially for the Saudis as the de facto OPEC leader. As a country getting ready of the very critical IPO of Aramco next year, they just can not afford price below 50, I think."
Meanwhile, oil market participants were assessing on Wednesday the potential impact upon the world's most traded commodity of the momentous overnight leadership change announced within Saudi Arabia's ruling family.
Early Wednesday, Saudi Arabia's King Salman unveiled his decision to relieve 57-year-old Interior Minister Muhammad bin Nayef of his position as crown prince in favor of his 31-year-old son, Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Mohammad bin Salman.
However, market analysts expect that the newly named Crown Prince is unlikely to make changes to oil production policy, but his more aggressive foreign policy stance could at some point put a political risk premium back in the price of oil, according to RBC.
[VANDANA HARI, Vanda Insights Founder] "Mohammed bin Salman was always in charge of oil policy as far as I can see. From his very famous interview with the Economist, where he announced that Aramco is going to IPO, and his Vision 2030 as well, so he was alwasy in charge. Not that he's wanting a mandate, but I think if anything now, he probablity will go ahead with a little more perhaps conviction, a little more stability, a little more predictability into the longer term, so we are talking about 10, 15, 20 years perhaps."
Bin Salman is also spearheading Vision 2030, a plan to diversify the economy away from its dependence on oil, and there could be new momentum with the change in leadership, she noted. A center piece of the plan is the public offering of state-owned Saudi Aramco, expected next year.
But for the short-term, the key question is still -- what can and will Saudi Arabia do to bolster the oil price before the Saudi Aramco's IPO next year.
CNBC's Qian Chen, reporting from Singapore.