Middle East

Shipping sources claim that the cost of shipping oil will remain high during the first half 2026, as the global fleet is aging and an increasing number of vessels face Western sanctions. However, rates may be capped in the second half. In recent weeks the cost of shipping crude oil for very large crude carrier (VLCC) vessels has risen by about $130,000 a daily due to OPEC's and its allies' high demand. Moreover, the number of ships available has decreased due to sanctions imposed on some vessels for transporting oil from Iran and Venezuela. Jan Rindbo is the chief executive...

These are the most popular stories from the business pages of the New York Times. These stories have not been verified and?doesn't vouch for accuracy. A JetBlue pilot reported that he narrowly missed colliding with an?U.S. A military aircraft was flying over the Caribbean after a?Air Force refueling plane passed in front of the commercial plane, without broadcasting its location. According to Syrian and American officials, the Syrian gunman who killed two U.S. Army soldiers and an American civilian interpreter belonged to Syria's security force and was scheduled for dismissal due his extremist views. California Governor Gavin Newsom is planning...

Ukraine's Navy accused?Russia on Saturday of attacking a civilian Turkish vessel carrying sunflower oil to Egypt with a drone, just a day after Moscow attacked two Ukrainian ports. The navy released a statement via Telegram stating that the vessel was named the Viva, and it had 11 'Turkish Citizens on board. The navy added that no one was injured and the vessel continued its journey towards?Egypt. The statement accused Russia of violating maritime law. "The strike took place 'in the open sea in Ukraine’s exclusive economic zones, outside of the range of Ukrainian aircraft defence systems," it said. The Navy...

The African Development Bank (AfDB), announced on Friday that it would lend Morocco 270 millions euros ($316 million) to upgrade the country's airport infrastructure before hosting FIFA World Cup 2030. Morocco will invest $4 billion to increase the capacity of its airports to 80 million passengers by 2030. The current number is 38 million. This investment is part of a plan to prepare for an influx in tourists ahead of the World Cup which Morocco will be co-hosting with Spain and Portugal. Morocco, the most visited country in Africa last year, is already on track to'set a new record for...

Six sources with knowledge of the situation said that the U.S. was preparing to intercept additional ships transporting Venezuelan crude oil after the seizure this week of a tanker. This is part and parcel of increasing pressure on Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. It was the first time that a Venezuelan oil tanker or cargo had been intercepted by U.S. authorities since 2019. The seizure came at a time when the U.S. is executing a massive military buildup on the southern Caribbean and as 'U.S. Donald Trump is pushing for Maduro to be ousted. Sources said that the latest U.S. actions...

Six?sources with knowledge of the situation said that the U.S. was preparing to intercept additional ships transporting Venezuelan crude oil after the seizure this week of a 'tanker. This will increase pressure on Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. This was the first time that an oil tanker or cargo from Venezuela had been intercepted by U.S. authorities, who have imposed sanctions on Venezuela since 2019. The U.S. is executing a massive military buildup in southern Caribbean, and President Donald Trump is campaigning for Maduro to be ousted. Sources said that the seizure had put shipowners and operators involved in transporting Venezuelan...

Five shipping and insurance sources reported on Thursday that the cost of war insurance for ships sailing into the Black Sea has increased again. Insurers are reviewing policies every day as the conflict in Ukraine spills over onto sea lanes. Black Sea is vital for shipping grain, oil and oil-based products. Bulgaria, Georgia and Romania, as well Russia and Ukraine, share its waters. Hakan Fidan, the Turkish Foreign Minister, said on Wednesday that recent attacks on Russian-linked tankers on the Black Sea threatened the safety and security of everyone in the region. Ships entering Russian or Ukrainian Black Sea terminals...

The Turkish maritime authority reported on Tuesday that a Russian-flagged oil tanker, sailing from Russia to Georgia with a cargo of sunflower oil, was attacked near the Turkish coast. However, its 13 crew members escaped unharmed. The vessel MIDVOLGA-2 reported being attacked 80 miles (130km) off the Turkish coastline but did not request assistance. It was heading towards the Sinop port in Turkey, according to the Maritime Affairs Directorate. NTV, a broadcaster in the United States, did not give any additional details but said that the attack was carried out by a kamikaze-style drone. When asked about the latest attack...

The Turkish maritime authority reported on Tuesday that a Russian-flagged oil tanker, sailing from Russia to Georgia with sunflower oil loaded aboard, was attacked near the Turkish coast. However, its 13 crew members were not injured. The Maritime Affairs Directorate reported that the vessel MIDVOLGA-2 had been attacked 80 miles (129 kilometers) off the Turkish coastline, but it did not request assistance. It was heading towards the Sinop port in Turkey. The report did not give any other details. Last Friday, Ukrainian drones targeted two tankers that were sanctioned in the Black Sea, as they approached a Russian port with...

An official of the SBU said that Ukraine had used marine drones to hit two Russian tankers in the Black Sea which were exporting oil and avoiding Western sanctions. An anonymous official confirmed that the SBU, along with the Ukrainian navy, conducted a joint operation against the vessels of the so-called "shadow fleet". Turkish authorities said two shadow fleet tanks were damaged by explosions near Turkey's Bosphorus Strait, causing them to catch fire. Rescue operations for the crews aboard were also launched. SBU officials said that both tankers – identified as the Kairos & Virat – were empty, and they...

The major Gulf stock markets were mixed early on Tuesday, after the Federal Reserve's dovish remarks revived hopes of a U.S. interest rate cut in December. Fed Governor Christopher Waller stated on Monday that the labor markets have softened enough to justify a rate cut of 25 basis points at the December meeting. However, any further easing depends on the release of economic data which was delayed due to the government shutdown. His comments follow New York Fed president John Williams' Friday comment that interest rates will likely decline "in a near-term." According to the CME FedWatch tool, investors now...

A senior government official announced that Tanzania would begin construction on a new port located in the eastern part of the country by December. This will end a decade-long delay caused by government objections over the contract terms initially agreed upon with foreign developers. Bagamoyo Port, a large-scale initiative of a special economic zone, involving industrial parks, rail and road connections, is located approximately 75 km north of Dar es Salaam, the commercial capital. Gerson Msigwa told reporters that on Sunday, the port would have 28 berths, but initially, construction will begin on 14. He said that construction machinery would...

Azerbaijani figures show that Azerbaijani oil exports through the Baku, Tbilisi, and Ceyhan pipelines fell by 7.1% between January and November, as a result of contaminated oil. Azerbaijani crude oil cargoes were found to contain organic chloride in July. This caused several days of delays in loadings at the?BTC Ceyhan Terminal in Turkey. The BTC pipeline that runs through Georgia - to Turkey - is used for?exporting oil from BP's Azeri, Chirag, and Guneshli fields. According to Azerbaijan’s statistics committee, the total amount of oil shipped through the BTC in the first 11 months of this year was 33.4 million...

Egypt's Cabinet announced on Sunday that it had signed a deal with Qatar's Al Mana Holding to invest $200 million in the first phase of a project to produce sustainable aviation fuel from used cooking oils at Ain Sokhna's Economic Zone along the Suez Canal. The project, which will span 100,000 sqm in the Integrated Sokhna Zone along Egypt's Red Sea coast, will be developed over three phases. In a press release, the cabinet stated that the first phase would have an annual production capacity of approximately 200,000 tons. Egypt claimed that the deal marks the first Qatari investment in...

Shipping data shows that Washington could punish more than 30 U.S. sanctioned oil vessels doing business in Venezuela after the Coast Guard confiscated a supertanker transporting Venezuelan crude to be exported. The President Donald Trump announced the seizure on Wednesday. It was the first time that an oil "cargo" from Venezuela had been seized. Venezuela has been subject to U.S. sanctions against it since 2019. This is also the first action taken by the Trump administration since he ordered the massive military buildup of the region. Shipping sources say that the U.S. actions, in which Trump intensifies pressure on Venezuelan...

SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state energy company, and MVM ONEnergy of Hungary have?signed a natural gas supply contract?that takes effect on 'January '1, 2026. Azerbaijani gas is gaining in importance since the collapse of Russian gas exports to Europe following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and subsequent Western sanctions. SOCAR stated that the new agreement was based on the old contract. SOCAR signed an agreement with MVM CEEnergy in June 2023 for a?supply? of 100 million cubic meters?of natural gas. Deliveries will begin in April 2024. A source familiar with the deal said that Azerbaijan would export around the same...

Investors were cautious as they assessed the shifting risk appetite in the global market and a series of Ukraine-related events. The MSCI emerging market equity index was up by 0.2%, while the currencies index was not much changed. Geopolitical turmoil has kept investors on edge, even though December is usually a calmer month. The markets have been hoping that the Federal Reserve will support momentum by lowering rates. However, the lack of progress in the efforts to end Russia-Ukraine conflict has limited gains. Ukraine's bonds denominated in dollars were stable on Thursday. Ukraine has struck the Druzhba pipeline in Russia's...

In mid-July Iranian drones flew through the mountains of northern Iraq's Kurdistan Region, zeroing in on their target: American oilfields. One of the missiles was fired by a militia group in Iraq that is likely to be Iranian-backed, and probably as retaliation against the U.S. strike on Iran's nuclear facilities weeks earlier. It hit the Sarsang oil field, which is operated by HKN Energy. This company belongs to the son Ross Perot, a Texas billionaire. A second hit was reported in a field near Dallas, operated by Hunt Oil. Nearly half of Kurdistan's production was halted by the end of...

The oil price rose on Thursday, after Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure indicated potential supply restrictions. Stalled peace talks dampened expectations of a deal to restore Russian oil flow to global markets. However, weak fundamentals limited gains. Brent crude rose by 24 cents or 0.38% to $62.91 at 0349 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 29 cents or 0.49% to $59.24. A Ukrainian military intelligence source confirmed that Ukraine had attacked the Druzhba pipeline in Russia's Tambov central region on Wednesday. This was the fifth attack against the pipeline, which sends Russian crude oil to Hungary or Slovakia. Later,...

The oil prices rose slightly on Thursday, after Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure indicated potential supply restrictions. Stalled peace talks dampened expectations of a deal to restore Russian oil flow to global markets. However, weak fundamentals limited gains. Brent crude rose by 14 cents or 0.22% to $62.81 at 0102 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 16 cents or 0.27% to $59.11. A Ukrainian military intelligence source confirmed that Ukraine had attacked the Druzhba pipeline in Russia's Tambov central region on Wednesday. This was the fifth attack against the pipeline, which sends Russian crude oil to Hungary or Slovakia....

Data from market sources, LSEG and other sources showed that Russia's seaborne gasoil and diesel exports increased 3% from October to 2.37 million metric tonnes in November despite the recent U.S. Sanctions and infrastructure damages caused by drones. The market sources said that exports of ultra low-sulphur fuel via Primorsk - Russia's biggest outlet for diesel shipments - grew 39.3% on a month-to-month basis to 1.221 millions tons, as major producers carried out seasonal and unplanned maintenance. Exports from Russia's south ports, on the other hand, fell dramatically as a result of drone attacks against infrastructure and refineries in the...

A tanker belonging to Russia's shadow navy exploded in the Black Sea, near the Bosphorus Strait in Turkey, on Friday. The explosion caused a fire in its engine room. 25 people were rescued. The Turkish Maritime Affairs Directorate reported that the tanker Kairos was en route from Turkey to Russia's Novorossiysk when it reported an "external impact" causing a 28 nautical mile fire. According to a person who has direct knowledge, a second oil tanker named Virat also suffered an explosion further east, in the Black Sea. According to LSEG, both Kairos and Virat appear on a list containing ships...

The protests and strikes in Italy against Giorgia's Meloni government on Friday caused dozens of flight cancellations and disruptions to train services throughout the country. The USB hardline union and smaller worker organizations called for the one-day strike against the government’s plans to increase military spending and support for Israel. In recent years, the USB has emerged as a grass-roots movement that is challenging the dominance of three major confederations: the CGIL (left-wing), the CISL (centrist) and UIL (right-wing). Bologna has cancelled 17 flights while Malpensa in Milan has cancelled 27. Milan Linate Airport, Naples and Venice are also affected....

The Inter-American Development Bank approved a loan of $300 million to assist Ecuador in strengthening its electrical system. This was announced by the Andean country's Finance Ministry on Wednesday. The IDB Group has launched the Amazonia Siempre Initiative, which focuses on sustainable development, conservation of forests and improvement of quality of life. The funding includes $270m in IDB Ordinary Capital, with a term of 22.5 years and an 8-year grace period. * The Clean Technology Fund will provide an additional $30 million at concessional rates with a 1.19% rate of interest over 20 years. * Over 700 km of transmission...