Crude Oil

Can India do for Asia's refined-fuels market what China did? China drastically cut its crude imports to a decade low in June in response to the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. This freed up oil for buyers who were struggling to find cargoes due to the 'effective closure of Strait of Hormuz. India has taken a different approach, purchasing Russian crude oil and increasing?exports?of refined products in order to offset the lower shipments of refineries from the Middle East and Russia. According to commodity analysts Kpler, India's light and middle distillates exports are expected to hit 1.55 million barrels...

Ankur Banerjee gives a look at what the day will bring for European and global markets. After five months of observing events in the Strait of Hormuz investors are now focusing on the Arabian Peninsula, where the Iranian-aligned Houthis who control the area near the 'Bab el-Mandeb strait, in the 'Red Sea open a new rift in the Middle East crisis. Brent futures have reached $96 a barrel, their highest level since early June. Investors are worried about stockpiles being depleted after Houthis announced a naval blocade against Saudi Arabia this week. Ship-tracking data revealed that the threat caused tankers...

The oil price rose to its highest level in six weeks?on Wednesday, as U.S. and Iran exchanged strikes, further endangering energy shipping across the Middle East. Meanwhile, U.S. stocks were flat before?important Big Tech earnings. Brent crude prices last rose around 3.5%, to $94 a barrel. This was the highest since early June. A brief detente that existed between the U.S., Iran and other countries ended in early this month. This has once again restricted tanker movements through the Strait of Hormuz. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, threatened to attack Iran's infrastructure again on Wednesday. The war, which has lasted...

The price of oil?soared to a six week high on Wednesday, as the U.S. traded with Iran, threatening the Middle East's energy shipping. Equities were flat before the release of important Big Tech earnings. Brent crude prices rose last around 2.7% to $93.40 per barrel, reaching levels that have not been seen since early June. The U.S.-Iran detente ended in early this month and tanker traffic was once again restricted through the Strait of Hormuz. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, threatened to launch more attacks against Iran's infrastructure on Wednesday. The war, which has lasted for nearly five months, has...

Early trading on Wednesday saw oil prices rise as concerns about further supply disruptions increased after U.S. forces said they began attacking Iranian military targets for an 11th night in a row and Kuwait reported attacks by Iranian drones. Brent 'crude 'futures increased 0.55% or 50 cents to $91.51 as markets opened on the third day of trading. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude rose 0.36% or 30 cents to $84.64 during low volume trades. The oil price settled at its highest level in five weeks on Tuesday, after U.S. forces struck targets in western and southern Iran. Iran also attacked...

The Nasdaq, chipmaker shares and major stock indexes all rose on Tuesday amid the rising tensions over the Iran conflict. Oil prices also reached a five-week high. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury Yields hit a two-month peak as traders pondered whether the new spike in oil prices would affect consumer prices, and increase the likelihood of Federal Reserve rate hikes. Two oil tankers transporting Saudi crude from the Red Sea to Asia have reversed their course after being threatened by Yemen's Iran aligned Houthis. U.S. Crude?rose by 2.32%, to $85.16, and Brent rose by 2.08% to $91.08 a barrel. Bruce Zaro...

Gold prices were little changed Monday as investors assessed the escalation of the Middle East conflict that has pushed up oil prices, and another U.S. Federal Reserve official signaled that higher interest rates may be necessary to reduce price pressures. As of 0455 GMT, spot gold was $4,018.90 an ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for August 'delivery' gained 0.1%, to $4 023.10. U.S. gold futures for August?delivery gained 0.1% to $4,023.10. Brian Lan, GoldSilver Central's Managing Director, said: "The war continues, and the focus is on rising oil costs that could lead higher inflation. This is what keeps gold under pressure."...

The operator of Kazakhstan's Kashagan Oilfield announced?on Thursday? that an international arbitral tribunal has issued a restraining order prohibiting Kazakhstan from enforcing an environmental fine. The Kazakh Justice Ministry announced on Tuesday that Kashagan's operator must pay a fine of $4.90 billion ($2.3 trillion tenge) by July 20, 2012. The country is involved in arbitration with oil companies that work on its oilfields. It accuses them of environmental violations and corrupt practices. The North Caspian Operating Company, Kashagan’s operator, stated in a statement: "The Arbitral Tribunal has issued a Restraining Order which prohibits the Republic to take any measures to...

The stock market rose on Wednesday, bonds were stable and oil was down as the U.S. dropped its plan to tax shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. South Korea's volatile KOSPI index jumped 6%, while Japan's Nikkei climbed 1%. However, volume was low and mood nervous due to the slowdown in AI stocks. ASML, Europe’s most valuable company, and the world’s largest supplier of chipmaking machinery, has beaten revenue expectations, and will likely set the tone for the European Open. The European futures declined by 0.2%, the FTSE futures dropped 0.3% and Nasdaq Futures rose 0.8%. The U.S. consumer price...

Oil prices rose on Wednesday after?President Donald Trump reimposed his naval blockade against all Iranian ports and Tehran launched attacks on U.S. Infrastructure in the region. Brent futures rose?99 cents or 1.2% to $85.72 per barrel at 0400 GMT. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 64 cents or 0.8% to $79.98 per barrel. Tuesday, oil prices rose 2% to a new one-month high as attacks intensified a supply disruption along the Strait of Hormuz. This is where a fifth of all the world's liquefied gas and oil passed before the U.S./Israeli war on Iran. "While the physical market for oil is...

Oil prices rose Wednesday after President Donald Trump reimposed his?naval ban on all Iranian ports, and Iran launched a retaliatory strike on U.S. facilities in the region. Brent closed at its highest level since 'June 12' and West Texas Intermediate?at its best since june 15 for the second consecutive session. Both prices rose on Wednesday morning trade. Brent climbed $1.46 or 1.72% to $86.19 per barrel at 0029 GMT, while WTI rose $1.11 or 1.4% to $80.40. Oil prices rose 2% on Tuesday to an all-time high, as the supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz - where one-fifth of...

Brent crude oil futures for immediate delivery reached a new high compared to the previous price of oil six months earlier. This was due to traders pricing in the renewed risk of Middle Eastern oil supplies and shipping via the Strait of Hormuz. The Brent first-month contract was $8.92 per barrel higher than the Brent sixth-month contract It is its highest?premium in the last 10 days. Backwardation is a market structure where prompt contracts are traded at a higher price than later ones. This is usually interpreted as an indication of tight near-term supply. Brent's decision follows a sharp increase...

Mike Dolan: What's important in U.S. markets and the global economy today? By Mike Dolan. Editor-at-Large for Finance & Markets. With the World Cup hoopla this weekend, many may have missed the fact that the Iran conflict has once again descended into full-blown warfare. As Tehran retaliated on U.S. bases and gulf shipping, Iranian attacks now have killed at least three U.S. troops. The traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is now a trickle. Brent crude has also risen above $90 a barrel for the first since early June. All that and more will be discussed below. Listen to the...

China's refined oil product exports in June improved over May but fell from the same period in last year, amid export restrictions that began in mid-March in order to protect domestic supply after the Iran War. China is Asia's biggest fuel exporter, and the increased export allowance will ease tight supplies because regional refiners have curtailed production due to war-related oil shortages. China's refined product exports to Hong Kong and Macau, including gasoline and diesel, totaled 643,712 tons. This is a slight increase of 4% from last June. Exports of refined oil products from China to other regions than Hong...

Want some inspiration? Weekend Reads is a weekly roundup of what the Open Interest team has read, watched and listened to. This week, the Open?Interest team has chosen to focus on the 'race to reinvent critical mineral resources,'?oil benchmarks that are under pressure and great-power geopolitics. This weekend, we are reading... MIKE DOLAN is a columnist for ROI Finance & Markets. The Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Survey found that China was viewed as more favorable than the United States in 36 countries. The U.S. Department of Energy released this release by ROI Metals columnist ANDY HOME. It details five...

Equities around the globe fell Thursday, as investors sold off heavy-weight chips stocks. Meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar and Treasury yields increased after the latest economic releases as well as as the Middle East war intensified. Chip stocks fell from Asia to the U.S., as ?higher-than-expected 77% ?earnings growth from Taiwanese chip manufacturing giant TSMC was not enough to impress investors who have heavily leaned into technology stocks related to artificial intelligence. According to LSEG, the U.S. reporting season for the second quarter started well. Analyst expectations for quarterly earnings increased to 24,8% on Wednesday, from 23,7% last week. Tony Welch...

Investors sold off chip stocks on Thursday, while oil futures lost earlier gains as U.S. and Iranian attacks intensified. Chip stocks?fell - from Asia to the U.S. - as investors who had heavily invested in technology stocks related artificial intelligence were not impressed by TSMC's 77% higher than expected earnings growth. This tells you that the AI trade no longer is priced on growth. The price is based on perfection. Gene Goldman is the chief investment officer of Cetera, a California-based company. "Any earnings report that is merely good, rather than flawless, will be sold," he said. Retail sales in...

?Asian stocks fell on Thursday, as a selloff in chipmakers obscured stellar earnings by industry leader TSMC. Meanwhile,?bonds benefited again from a benign reading of?U.S. Inflation that reduced the likelihood of a rate hike. As the U.S. finished its latest attacks on Iran, oil prices dropped. In recent days, the Middle East has been rife with hostilities. Washington launched attacks against Iran while Tehran targeted U.S. bases located in Kuwait and Jordan. Brent crude futures last fell 0.5% to $84.5 per barrel, but rose 11% in the past week. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), world's biggest contract manufacturer of advanced...

Officials at the company said that 'Sinopec' is undertaking a major restructuring within its own organization, establishing new business units, and moving hundreds of staff in order to re-establish profits amid a slumping Chinese demand for oil, petrochemicals, and other products. Sinopec, a state-owned company, has lagged behind its peers PetroChina Ltd and CNOOC Ltd in recent years. These companies benefit from a greater focus on oil production. Sinopec's reorganisation, which began in early this year, is aimed at focusing more on the needs of customers and efficiency. Chairman Hou Qijun was a geologist, and former general director at Chinese...

Two sources with knowledge of the matter confirmed on Wednesday that China's Zhenhua Oil had booked to load 2 million barrels in Saudi crude for August. This is a sign that a new?joint venture? refinery between China and Saudi Arabia will soon begin operations. The crude will be supplied to the newly built 300,000-barrel-per-day Huajin Aramco Petrochemical Co (HAPCO) refinery in northeastern China's Liaoning province, the sources said. HAPCO was formed by Saudi Aramco, Norinco Group (a Chinese state-owned conglomerate) and Panjin Xincheng Industrial Group. HAPCO has delayed its start-up to September or even October due to disruptions in Middle...

The shares were modestly up on Tuesday, after U.S. inflation figures that were weaker than expected and strong earnings for the second quarter from major banks. Oil prices also rose as the U.S. fought Iran 'for control' of the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. Consumer Price Index rose by less than expected 3,5% over the past 12 months, after a 4.2% increase in May. Analysts had expected a month-over-month drop of 0.1%. This is mainly due to the drop in gasoline prices last month from their multi-year highs, as a fragile U.S. Iran ceasefire was implemented last month. On Tuesday,...

The dramatic reduction in China's crude oil imports is credited with preventing prices from rising during the Iran conflict. The question now is whether the world’s largest oil importer will be able to do the same for markets that are increasingly stressed. In June, China's imports of crude oils by sea fell to their lowest level in over a decade. According to commodity analysts?Kpler, arrivals were 5.96 million barrels a day. This was down from an average of 10,66 million bpd during the three months prior to the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, which began a conflict which resulted in a...

Oil hit a new one-month high on Tuesday in Asian trading after President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would reintroduce its blockade of Iranian ships and collect a?20%?fee for cargo crossing the Strait of Hormuz. After a volatile session MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan gained 0.2% as gains in Taiwan were offset by gains for South Korean stocks. S&P 500 futures e-mini edged up 0.1%. The CSI 300, which tracks Chinese stocks, rose 2% as export and import figures for June were released on Tuesday. These data exceeded economists' predictions. ING analysts reported in a research note...

Spot premiums for Indian naphtha have risen to levels seen last in late March as tight supplies from the Middle East and Russia, and renewed concerns about U.S.-Iran tensions, drove demand from Far East buyers. Multiple trade sources reported?on Monday that Indian state refiners Bharat Petroleum Corp. and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. sold about '63,000-65,000 tonnes (567,000-585,00 barrels) or naphtha through tenders last week, at prices similar to those seen in late March. BPCL sold a total of 36,000-37,000 tonnes of?naphtha on a 'free-on-board' (FOB basis) to Middle East quotes for loading between July 30 and 31. HPCL sold 27,000-28,000 tons...