Rising inventories and China’s clampdown on credit—could conditions be turning bearish for the short-term in the oil markets? Tom Petrie, vice chairman at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, shared his views.
Petrie said he expects the disconnect between natural gas and crude oil to continue.
“What you have is a great new supply story on the natural gas side: the combination of growing availability of liquefied natural gas and the new growth perspective of gas in North America,” Petrie told CNBC.
Petrie told investors that there are opportunities to make money both domestically and internationally.
“In the near to intermediate term, we are seeing early signs of a recovery in the oilfield services for gas development in North America,” he said. “One of the perverse impact of the increased regulation from the EPA is going to be an incentive for more gas consumption."
"Longer term, there’s also international opportunities, but in the near-term, natural gas, oilfield prospects are looking very good,” he said.
In terms of international investments, Petrie said he is focusing on West Africa and Brazil, the “leading edge” of deep-water developments.
“And according to the Saudi oil minister recently, we’re in a sweet spot for pricing,” he said. “$70 to 80 oil is high enough to be an incentive for new oil development and not so high as to contribute incremental demand destruction.”
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Allegheny Energy
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Disclosures:
No immediate information was available for Petrie or his firm.
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