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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery added 34 cents to $56.54 on the New York Merc, while Brent for January added 44 cents to $62.13 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $21.76 to WTI, down from a discount of $20.00. Natural gas for December shot up 11 cents to $2.81. The TSX energy index added 4.09 points to close at 131.18.

Global oil benchmarks rose on signs of progress in resolving a trade dispute between the United States and China. Meanwhile, other big industry news included the official launch yesterday of the long-promised initial public offering of Saudi Aramco, the state oil giant, following nearly four years of delays. The company is hoping to sell the first shares on its domestic exchange in December. The IPO is key to paying for Crown Prince Mohammed's "Vision 2030" plan to transform the Saudi economy and reduce its reliance on oil. His original hope for Aramco was a valuation of around $2-trillion (U.S.) range, but now the company and its bankers are targeting a range of $1.6-trillion (U.S.) to $1.8-trillion (U.S.), with some analysts going as low as $1.5-trillion (U.S.). Based on Aramco's goal of selling a 2- to 5-per-cent initial ownership interest, the IPO could raise $20-billion (U.S.) to $40-billion (U.S.). The world record for an IPO was set by Alibaba when it raised $25-billion (U.S.) in 2014.

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