East Asia

Saudi Arabia and its neighbours in the Gulf will celebrate the eventual reopening of Strait of Hormuz. But the ensuing oil flood could erode OPEC’s fragile grip on the markets. The Iran War and the closing of the vital waterway, through which nearly one fifth of world oil and gas passed before the conflict, have dramatically reduced the output of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and shifted the industry's center of gravity away. Riyadh has limited options to counter these changes. The strait is not expected to reopen anytime soon, and it's unclear what the conditions will be. Iran...

Ship-tracking data showed that three more liquefied gas tankers left the Strait of Hormuz without their transponders and were heading to destinations in 'Asia. However, it is unclear when exactly they made this 'transit. The United States and Iran exchanged air attacks on Thursday for the second day in a row, with U.S. president Donald Trump threatening further?strikes until Tehran accepts a peace agreement and Washington claiming it 'fired on an Iranian oil vessel. QatarEnergy-controlled tankers Lebrethah (left) and?Rasheeda (right) were last spotted west of the Strait on June 1, and April 30, respectively. They carried?cargoes that had been loaded...

Vingroup, a Vietnamese company, is speeding up construction of the world's biggest stadium in Hanoi. They are betting that future demand will make the 135,000-seat venue financially viable. A Vingroup representative said during a recent site visit that thousands of workers work around the clock on the site located about 25 kilometers (15.5 miles south of the central Hanoi) to finish the venue by the end of July 2027. The completion date is a year earlier than the original plan announced in December. Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest company by market capitalisation and working on a number of projects including a high-speed...

China's National Safety Regulators summoned China Communications Construction Company, and Power Construction Corporation of China on Wednesday for what they alleged were safety failures related to two major accidents. The emergency management ministry said that negligence, falsifications and illegal subcontracting as well as cutting corners, and failures in safety management at two companies and their subsidiaries led to a road collapse in May 2024 in southern China, which killed 52 people, and a partial collapse in November 2025 of a newly built?bridge in southwest China. The statement said that "the same types of accidents hazards were found repeatedly during inspections...

Ship-tracking data revealed that a fifth Qatari LNG tanker?transited the Strait of Hormuz carrying a cargo. This brings the total to nine?LNG vessels which have?exited this waterway with a cargo since the onset of the 'war. According to Kper and LSEG, the Al Daayen was controlled by QatarEnergy. It was spotted on ship-tracking data around June 4-5 off the coasts of Qatar. On Monday, it reappeared in ship-tracking data that showed the vessel east of the Strait and heading towards?China. According to Kper, the tanker reportedly loaded a cargo?on 1 June at Qatar's Ras Laffan Terminal. According to Vortexa, an...

The major Gulf stock exchanges rose slightly on Thursday in the early trading after Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement ceasefire. This boosted optimism for a larger deal to end the U.S. War with Iran, even though tensions were simmering. A joint statement issued by the U.S. State Department following talks in Washington said that the Israel-Lebanon truce is conditional on the complete cessation from fire of the Iran-aligned Hezbollah and the evacuation?of all their operatives?from the South Litani Sector. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, suggested Wednesday that progress could be made in negotiations with Iran by this weekend. Iran...

The price of Asia's naphtha fell to its lowest level since early March, as the Abu Dhabi Oil Company (ADNOC), resumed exports via the Omani port in Sohar. This could provide an alternative supply route, which would ease the supply shortage caused by the U.S./Israeli war against Iran. ADNOC stopped exports of around 1 million metric tonnes per month of petrochemical feedstock to its Ruwais Refinery in April, after the war curtailed shipping via the Strait?Hormuz. Last month, the United Arab Emirates producer resumed its exports by using tankers to transport cargoes to the?refinery within the Gulf and then transferring...

The price of Asia's naphtha has fallen to its lowest level since early March, as Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC), resumed exports via the Omani Port of Sohar in May, according to traders. This could provide an alternative supply route, which would ease the supply crisis caused by the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. ADNOC stopped exports of petrochemical feedstock of around 1 million metric tonnes per month from its Ruwais Refinery in April, after the war curtailed shipping via the Strait of Hormuz. Last month, the United Arab Emirates producer resumed exports by using tankers to transport...

Early trade on Monday saw most Gulf stock exchanges retreat after Iran and the U.S. traded strikes. Israel also ordered its troops to advance further into Lebanon in its battle with Tehran-backed Hezbollah. The U.S. said it had struck Iranian military sites at the weekend. Iran's Revolutionary Guards responded by saying they had attacked a U.S.-based base. This is the latest exchange in negotiations to end a three-month old?war. The fighting that followed the Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington on Friday tempered hopes that U.S. officials and Iranians would soon announce an extension of their ceasefire. Saudi Arabia's benchmark Index fell...

During a meeting between the Panamanian Foreign Ministry Javier Martinez-Acha and China's foreign minister Wang Yi, Xinhua's official news service reported that Beijing was prepared to 'deepen practical collaboration with Panama'. It also urged Central American countries?to protect Chinese firms' 'rights'. Wang, who met Acha at a United Nations Security Council Meeting in New York said 'China-Panama ties shouldn't be subjected to third-party intervention, Xinhua reports. This is a reference to U.S. pressuring over Chinese-linked facilities near the Panama Canal which handles 5% global maritime trade. The meeting follows months of tension about the future of the two major container...

China and Pakistan reached a new 'broad consensus' on strengthening strategic ties, including a plan to establish Gwadar port as a regional connectivity hub and further develop a joint economic route. The remarks were made in a joint press release as Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Shaif concluded a trip to Beijing. Islamabad, at the time, is looking for investment and balancing tensions with Afghanistan while mediating the Iran-Iraq war. In a statement issued after Sharif's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and others, they said that both sides "welcomed third?parties" to take part in the development the...

Officials?said Monday that more than 30 people were killed in a suicide attack on a train on Sunday in southwest Pakistan. This was the latest attack by separatist Balochistan militants. On Monday, two provincial officials who spoke 'under condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to divulge the information' said that the death toll was now over 30. On Sunday, a suicide car bomber who rammed a train with explosives killed at least 24 people. A car bomb exploded in Quetta, the provincial capital. It was aimed at a shuttle train carrying Pakistani security officers and their families. The...

Inpex, a Japanese company, said that it will seek urgent orders from Australia’s Fair Work Commission to stop protected industrial actions at its Ichthys liquid natural gas facilities. A supply disruption from prolonged strikes would exacerbate the tightness of global LNG markets already reeling from the Iran War and the close closure of the Strait of Hormuz which carries about a fifth of crude oil and LNG worldwide. Asia Spot LNG Prices Since the Iran War began, prices have increased 75% to $18.80 for every million British thermal unit (mmBtu). Inpex took this action after being warned by the Offshore...

The Iran War is shaping up as one of the largest?supply shocks' in the history the aluminum market. According to the International Aluminium Institute, the Gulf's production of this metal, used in sectors such as transportation, packaging and solar panels, plummeted in April to its lowest level for over a decade. The regional run-rates fell by 2 million metric tons annually between March and April. In missile strikes, two Gulf aluminium smelters were damaged. Al Taweelah, the Emirates Global Aluminium plant in Al Taweelah will require a year to repair. At least one other manufacturer - Qatalum has reduced its...

The Swiss government announced on Friday that it had expanded its sanctions against Russia and Belarus, adopting portions of the latest package of measures from the European Union in response to Moscow's conflict in Ukraine. The Federal Department of Economic Affairs (FDEA)?said that the new listings will take effect at 11 p.m. on May 22. Further 115 individuals and companies will be subject to asset freezing and a 'ban' on making funds available. Sanctioned individuals are also barred from entering Switzerland or transiting through it. The department stated that the newly listed targets included people and 'entities connected to Russia's...

The Iran War is likely to be the largest supply shock in the history on the aluminium market. According to the International Aluminium Institute, the Gulf's?production? of the metal, used in sectors such as packaging, solar panels and transport, plummeted in April to its lowest level in more than a decade. The regional run-rates fell by 2 million metric tonnes annually between March and April. In missile attacks, two Gulf aluminium smelters were damaged. The?Al Taweelah facility of Emirates Global Aluminium will require a full year to be repaired. One other producer,?Qatalum, has also reduced its?capacity. The ongoing closure of...

Donald Trump, President of the United States, vowed on Thursday to'recover' Iran's stockpile of highly enriched Uranium. This was despite Iran's comments that they would not give the material over. We will get it. We don't have to, and we don't even want it. Trump told reporters at the White House that he would probably destroy it once we had it. But we wouldn't let them keep it. Iran is thought to have about 900 pounds (or more) of highly enriched Uranium. Trump claims that U.S. airstrikes and Israeli airstrikes destroyed it a year or so ago. Trump's war on...

Gazprom shares fell on Thursday, despite the announcement that they would not be paying a dividend for '2025' results. They were also impacted by Russia's inability to reach a deal with China on a new pipeline. The shares of Russia's biggest natural gas producer fell almost 1% in early trade at the Moscow stock exchange, continuing the previous day's decline of 3.5%. "Yesterday the Moscow Exchange Index fell?by 1.2 percent, unable withstand a?double disappointment: reports from China regarding the 'lack of clarity about the 'timeframe for implementing the Power of Siberia?2 project and Gazprom refusing to pay dividends in 2025,"...

China and 'Russia' condemned U.S. President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense shield plans and Washington's 'irresponsible' nuclear policy during a joint meeting on 'Wednesday', a week following President Xi 'Jinping's hosting of Trump in Beijing. In a joint statement, Xi and Russian 'President Vladimir Putin' said that Trump’s plans for a missile interceptor system based on the ground and in space posed a serious threat to strategic stability around the world. The report also criticised the United States for the expiration of the last remaining nuclear treaty that restricted the size of U.S.-Russian arsenals. This expired in February after...

China has increased its purchases of Russian gas and oil since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine 2022. Moscow and Beijing declared a partnership with "no limitations" just days before war broke out. Energy relations between Russia and China are expected to be a major topic at the meeting of Vladimir Putin with Xi Jinping in Beijing, on Wednesday. Here are some facts about energy ties between the two countries. Gazprom, the Russian energy giant, supplies natural gas to China through a pipeline of 3,000 km (1,865 miles) called Power of Siberia, under a $400 billion, 30-year deal signed...

The Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit China this week, and he will 'hold discussions with President Xi Jinping. A Kremlin aide stated on Monday that a detailed discussion of the proposed Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline would be held. China, 'the world's largest oil and gas consumer, is a major buyer of Russian products. Here are some facts regarding the proposed pipeline: What is the POWER OF SIBERIA II? Power of Siberia 2 is a planned 2,600 km (1,616 miles) system that will transport 50 billion cubic meters (bcm), or 50 billion cubic feet per year...

According to data from traders and LSEG, the increase in oil exports and transit through Russia's western port ports was around?150,000 barrels per daily (bpd), a?9% rise, compared with April. The ongoing drone attacks on Russian refineries force Moscow to increase crude oil exports. However, traders warn that the spare capacity of the Transneft system is close to its limit. Estimates show that between May 1-15, the average exports and transit volumes of Urals and KEBCO, as well as Siberian Light, via Primorsk and Ust-Luga, were?about 2,35-2.4 million barrels per day. This is up from 2.2?million barrels per day in...

The nickel industry in Indonesia is being affected by the soaring sulfur prices due to the continuing closure of "the Strait of Hormuz". The Gulf is the main source of nickel for the world's biggest producer of battery metal. The sulfur squeeze is a new measure that the Indonesian government has introduced to try and control its nickel production. The explosive growth of the country's production will flood the global market, causing prices to plummet in 2024 and 2025. This month, the prospect of a lower Indonesian production and a corresponding change in market balance lifted London Metal Exchange nickel...

The soaring sulfur prices caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz are beginning to affect?Indonesia’s huge nickel sector. The Gulf is a major input to the world's biggest producer of battery metal. The sulfur squeeze is a new addition to the Indonesian government’s mix of measures to control its nickel production sector. The explosive growth of the country's production flooded the world market, and prices fell?throughout?2024-2025. This month, the prospect of lower Indonesian production and a corresponding change in market balance lifted London Metal Exchange nickel to its highest levels since two years. WAR AND POLITICS The Iran...