Asia

As independent refiners reduce their purchases due to the rise in crude oil prices, sellers of Iranian oil are offering greater discounts to China this month. They want to reduce their inventories. Three traders reported that Iranian Light crude oil was being traded between $3.30 and $35 a barrel under ICE Brent, compared with a discount around $2.50 in June. The main Chinese buyers for Iranian crude are independent refineries known as teapots. Since the conflict between Israel and Iran began last week, crude oil prices have risen by $10 per barrel. According to traders, teapots in the province of...

Maersk, a container shipping company, announced on Friday that it has temporarily suspended vessel calls to Israel's Haifa Port due to the country's escalated conflict with Iran. The Danish company stated that it has not encountered any other disruptions in its planned operations in the area. Haifa Port, which will be privatized by India's Adani Ports in 2022, has 70% of its ownership held by Adani Ports, while 30% belongs to Israel's Gadot Group. Adani Ports, the port-operating arm of Adani Group led by billionaire Gautam Adani, is part of Adani Group. The company has four ports, including Haifa Port....

In a recent meeting with President Donald Trump, Pakistan's Army Chief expressed concern that separatists and jihadists along the Pakistan-Iran frontier could exploit any fall in authority in Iran. Both sides of the 900km (560 miles) border are occupied by anti-Iranian, anti-Pakistan groups. Israel's officials have stated that as they bomb Iran's nuclear programme, they want to destabilize or topple the Iranian government. Pakistan is also concerned that Israel has set a precedent by attacking nuclear installations in another country. In May, nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan & India engaged in a four-day war. After a lunch with Pakistan's Army Chief, Field...

Two market sources and calculations show that Russia increased its gasoline exports via railway by about a quarter between January and may, owing to a easing of the fuel embargo. Russia has banned gasoline exports as of March 2024 in order to balance the excessive demand for petroleum and stabilize prices on the domestic market. Fuel supplied to members of the Eurasian Economic Union, led by Moscow, was exempted from this rule. In November, the government lifted an embargo on gasoline supplied by producers. However, it extended restrictions to other exporters such as independent traders or re-sellers. Drone attacks also...

Court documents show that a Moscow court on Tuesday ruled to give the assets of Russia's third largest airport, Moscow Domodedovo to the Russian State at the Prosecutor's General's request. Dmitry Kamenshchik, a Russian businessman or one of his companies owned Domodedovo. According to Russian media Kamenshchik was also a citizen of Turkey and United Arab Emirates. And according to court documents, prosecutors were concerned that the ownership structure of the airport could expose it to foreign influence. Domodedovo has not responded to comments immediately. The Domodedovo investigation is part of a long line of asset seizures that prosecutors have...

Israel's Airlines said Tuesday that the government had given them permission to begin flights to bring people back who were stranded overseas during the conflict with Iran. Israel's airspace is closed after Israel and Iran started trading attacks on Friday. Tens of thousands were stranded when their flights to Tel Aviv cancelled. El Al Airlines, Israel’s flag carrier, announced that it will operate flights from Larnaca to Israel on Wednesday, as well as to Athens, Rome and Milan. It added that there would be no more passenger flights departing Israel. El Al has canceled all scheduled flights until June 23....

Industry sources reported on Tuesday that war risk insurance premiums are up to three times more expensive for shipments going to Israel as the conflict between Israel and Iran enters its fifth day. They said that the cost of a 7-day trip to Israeli ports ranged from 0.7% to 1.00 % of the ship's value, as opposed to around 0.2% last week. Underwriters may price risks and rates differently. This will result in tens or thousands of dollars extra per day for each voyage. David Smith, the head of marine at insurance broker McGill and Partners said that rates for...

According to industry sources and LSEG, Sibur, Russia’s largest producer and supplier of liquefied petrol gas (LPG), doubled the amount of LPG loaded through the Baltic port Ust-Luga from January-May 2025 compared with the same period of 2024, to 418,000 metric tonnes. Sources said that Sibur was able to increase its exports through the shipment of new MGC class (medium-sized gas carriers) gas tankers. Each of these vessels can carry up to 20,000 tonnes of product. LSEG data revealed that the company has also resumed LPG deliveries to India, which it had last done in 2023. Sources said that after...

Israel launched attacks against Iran on 13 June, claiming that it was the beginning of a long-term operation to stop Tehran from developing an atomic bomb. Iran has threatened in the past to close the Strait of Hormuz to traffic as a retaliation for Western pressure. Experts say that a closure of the Strait of Hormuz could impact on global oil prices and restrict trade. Here are some details on the Strait. The Strait is located between Oman, Iran and the Gulf of Oman. It connects the Gulf of Oman in the north with the Arabian Sea to the south....

The availability of tankers in late May and early June allowed for a further reduction in freight rates from Russian oil to India. However, this trend could reverse itself if the proposed price cap by Europe is implemented. The European Union proposed a new sanctions package against Russia for its actions in Ukraine, and suggested that the price cap of Russian crude oil be lowered from $60 per barrel to $45 per barrel by the Group of Seven. The G7 and EU imposed a $60 cap on Russian crude oil by the end of 2022. This would restrict access to...

Imports into the busiest U.S. port at Los Angeles fell 9% on an annual basis in May. This gives insight on how many shipments have been canceled or put to hold since President Donald Trump slapped 145% tariffs on goods from China. Los Angeles is America's No. 1 port for seaborne imports. Los Angeles is the No. 1 port of entry for these imports. Toys, furniture, and auto parts are important to domestic businesses from Walmart to Ford. In May, the data began to reflect the new 145% tariffs. The port of Los Angeles handled 355,950 20 foot shipping containers...

The Combined Maritime Force, a multinational force led by the United States, said that despite Israel's attack on Iran, merchant shipping continued to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, even though some shipowners wanted to avoid the area. Iran has threatened in the past to close down the Strait of Hormuz as a retaliation to Western pressure. The Strait of Hormuz could be closed, which would impact the global oil price and restrict trade. The Combined Maritime Force issued an advisory saying that the Strait of Hormuz was open, and commercial traffic continued to flow unhindered. It also said that...

LSEG data and two sources stated that the increase in Turkey's Urals crude imports is due to seasonal demand and healthy refinery margins. According to LSEG, the imports of Urals in Turkey will reach 1.64 million metric tonnes in May. This will be the highest level since May 2024 when the country imported 1,76 million tons. The second largest importer of Urals crude oil by sea is Turkey, after India. It has not complied with Western sanctions against Russia, but it does comply with international laws. Data shows that urals prices were below $60 per barrel at Russian ports during...

In an interview given on Wednesday, the head the state gas company said that Serbia was working on a gas deal with Russia. It will receive the best price available in Europe. Dusan Bjatovic, head of Srbijagas said that Europe, like Serbia, would be forced to return to Russian gas in order to meet its energy requirements at a reasonable price. Serbia was one of the few remaining Russian gas consumers in Europe last year, with around 3 billion cubic meters. It is seeking to join the European Union. This week, the EU proposed a legally-binding ban on the imports...

Careem, Uber’s ride-hailing division in the Middle East will suspend its Pakistani service on 18 July, citing economic issues, increasing competition, and capital restrictions. This marks an end to its core business, which was pioneered in Pakistan nearly a decade earlier. This move highlights the strains on Pakistan's digital industry as tech firms cut back due to high inflation, weak demand from consumers, and tighter capital flows. Careem's nearly 10-year run is over. The app was launched in 2015, and quickly became the dominant player in mobile apps. In a LinkedIn posting on Wednesday, Mudassir Shaikha, Careem's co-founder, CEO, and...

Japan's second-largest shipping company, Mitsui O.S.K. Takeshi Hashimoto, CEO of Lines (MOL), said that the company is continuing to operate as usual in Gulf while closely watching the situation in the area. Hashimoto said on the sidelines the Energy Asia Conference that "we are operating so many container, car carriers, and chemical tankers, so it is very difficult for us reduce or stop the service." He added that although there was no alternative route in the Gulf for shipping, it had been re-routed to the Cape of Good Hope following the attack by the Yemeni Houthis on ships in the...

A person familiar with this matter told me on Monday that Mitsubishi Corp was in negotiations to buy the U.S. Shale Production and Pipeline assets of Aethon Energy Management. The price is estimated at $8 billion. If the deal is struck, the Japanese conglomerate would gain a significant natural gas operation near the U.S. Gulf Coast and the energy export infrastructure being developed there. The source said that talks between Mitsubishi and Aethon were ongoing. She cautioned, however, that no transaction was guaranteed and spoke under condition of anonymity in order to discuss confidential discussions. The assets are operated and...

Calculations based on data from traders showed that the price of Russia's Urals crude rose above the $60 limit set by Western nations, as the Brent price surged last week due to rising tensions in Middle East. The oil prices rose on Friday, and ended 7% higher after Israel and Iran exchanged air strikes. This fueled investor concerns that the conflict could disrupt Middle East oil exports. As part of a wide range of sanctions, the U.S. and other Group of Seven nations, including Australia, imposed a price cap on Russian oil exports by sea in late 2022. According to...

Uganda forecasts its economic growth will accelerate to about 7% in the coming year, indicating that officials do not plan on large-scale production of energy in the next twelve months. This year, growth was projected at 6.3%. The latest government estimate was that crude production would begin in the middle of the year. However, this date has been pushed back repeatedly due to disagreements between the government of President Yoweri Museeveni and international energy companies and the slow progress of building critical infrastructure. Companies including France's TotalEnergies, China's CNOOC and China's TotalEnergies are developing Uganda's oilfields near the border with...

Khnatsakh residents are anxious at nightfall. Locals claim that every evening, around 10 pm, Azerbaijani soldiers fire into the night skies from their positions high above. Villagers say that bullets have been hitting houses regularly, but no one has been injured so far. Azerbaijan has denied that its troops are firing across the border and accused Armenian forces of violating ceasefire. Karo Andranyan (66), a retired mechanic, said, "It is very tense at home because we have children, little ones and elderly." Azerbaijani flags and a military position on a hillside are only 100 metres away from his door. This...

According to industry sources and calculations, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium has reduced daily oil production in May from April by 6% to 5,906 million metric tonnes (1.51 millions barrels per day). CPC, the company that carries over 80% of Kazakh oil exports connects Tengiz in western Kazakhstan, and other fields, with the CPC terminal at Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka in Russia, near Novorossiisk. Sources said that Kazakh exports of oil via CPC dropped to 5.386 millions tons in may from 5.523 in April, while Russian oil supplies via CPC reached 0.52 million tonnes in May compared with 0.57 million in April. The...

The European Commission's proposal to lower the price of Russian oil to punish Moscow for the war in Ukraine would not help stabilize the global energy market, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated on Wednesday. The European Commission proposed on Tuesday to lower the price cap of the Group of Seven Nations on Russian crude oil from $60 to $45 per barrel, in an attempt to reduce the country's revenue. Peskov, when asked about the EU proposal he called Western sanctions such as these illegal. Peskov said that such actions "do not contribute to stabilising international energy markets or the oil...

Two sources have confirmed that U.S. LNG developer Commonwealth LNG, which is planning to build an export facility in Louisiana to provide 1 million metric tonnes per year (mtpa), of LNG, will soon sign a contract with Japan's largest power generator JERA. Commonwealth LNG would be able to commit 8 mtpa under the long-term contract. The company stated publicly that they want to secure contracts for 8 mtpa or more of their 9.5 mtpa capacity LNG export terminal to ensure the project's financial viability. The U.S. exports more LNG than any other country in the world. Based on the projects...

According to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the 18th package against Russia has been proposed. It targets its energy revenues, banks, and military industry. The new package proposes to ban transactions with Russia's Nord Stream Gas Pipelines as well as banks who engage in sanctions-circumvention. Von der Leyen said at a press conference that "Russia will only understand the language of strength" if it imposes the rule by force. In an effort to reduce Russia's revenues from energy, the Commission also proposed that the price cap for Russian crude oil be lowered to $45 per barrel. It was...