AUGUSTASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK8NEWSROOMNORTH ASIAN CUSTOMERS TO RECEIVE COMPLETE VOLUMES OF CRUDE OIL FROM SAUDI ARAMCO, SOURCES SAYINDIA & JAPAN TO PROVIDE SRI LANKA IN ECONOMIC RECONSTRUCTION, SRI LANKA URGES TRILATERAL PARTNERSHIPAs active and vital middle powers in the Indo-Pacific region, India and Japan's partnership for project-specific support in Sri Lanka is significant, and with their proven experience, knowledge, and expertise in tackling specific development challenges, both countries could support Sri Lanka financially and technically, according to a report released by the Pathfinder Foundation, a prominent Colombo-based think tank.The report, titled "Medium and Long-Term Strategy for Indo-Japanese Collaboration to Support Sri Lanka's Economic Transformation," was released here on Aug 10 in collaboration with two prominent New Delhi think tanks, NATSTRAT and Vivekananda International Foundation, as well as the Confederation of Indian Industry.Given its geographical proximity and current "Neighbourhood First" policy, India is a natural trade and investment partner for Sri Lanka. Japan has a long history of cooperation with the country that provides development assistance. According to the report, "a vulnerable developing country like Sri Lanka can use tripartite cooperation to signal its specific demands more efficiently, thereby increasing opportunities for joint projects."The report identifies four broad areas of tripartite cooperation: low-carbon power generation in Sri Lanka; development of Trincomalee as an energy hub; logistics and connectivity; and people-to-people contact.Addressing the launch of the report Japanese Ambassador to India Hiroshi Suzuki said that India's issuance of financing assurances to Sri Lanka at the time of its economic crisis was instrumental in accelerating the process of Sri Lanka's debt restructuring and that it appreciates India's engagement and forward-looking approach on the issue. Based on multiple sources, Saudi Aramco has informed customers in North Asia that they will receive the full volumes of crude oil they requested for September, despite the kingdom's unilateral voluntary output cut being extended.Last week, the world's top oil exporter announced that it would extend the 1 million barrels-per-day (bpd) production cut for another month, to September, and that it could be extended further or even deepened.Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser stated on 7 August that the company's customer supplies remain adequate.According to three trading sources, despite Saudi Aramco's higher official selling prices (OSPs), Chinese refiners did not request lower supply volumes for September-loading cargoes.They predicted that Chinese buyers would take 50 million to 52 million barrels of Saudi crude, up from about 38 million barrels in August. Due to high oil prices, some Chinese refiners have requested less supply from Saudi Aramco in the last three months and have increased procurement from the Americas and West Africa.
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