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Data shows that Russia is diverting its naphtha away from Oman because of the Middle East crisis?
LSEG data and traders' reports indicate that Russia is diverting its naphtha from Oman to Singapore as it searches for new buyers. At least one tanker has now headed for Singapore. Iran's retaliatory?attacks on Gulf countries have caused disruptions in energy production, shipping and naphtha discharges. Since the European Union embargo against Russian oil products came into effect in February 2023 most Russian naphtha is being shipped to the Middle East and Asia. Middle Eastern countries also are the largest suppliers to Asia. The recent disruption has pushed Asia's naphtha price to four-year heights. According to LSEG, the Liberia flagged?tanker Amfitrion halted its navigation last week near the Gulf of Masira, and turned towards Singapore on Tuesday. Shipping data revealed that five middle-sized tanks carrying 180,000 metric tonnes of naphtha left Russian ports in January for a STS (ship to ship) berth offshore near Oman’s Shinas. Unknown is the 'final destination' of these cargoes. According to LSEG data and traders, Russia sent two cargoes containing 190,000 tonnes of naphtha to Oman’s Sohar in November-December, as?its?other markets?dried up. India and Taiwan used to be the two main Asian consumers of Russian naphtha. However, recent U.S. sanction have caused both countries to withdraw. The U.S. President Donald Trump ordered in December a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers that enter or leave Venezuela. This has led to a 'zero' drop in exports to Venezuela this year. Although Asian buyers are facing a naphtha crisis, Western sanctions may force traders to avoid Russian cargoes. Market sources claim that the long journey from Russia's Baltic port to Asia prevents timely shipments. Reporting by Kirsten Donovan (Editing by Kirsten Doovan)
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ADNOC subsidiaries report normal operations, with no impact on regional developments
Six listed subsidiaries of Abu Dhabi's state oil giant ADNOC said that their operations were continuing as normal on Wednesday, with no material impact from recent regional events on their finances or businesses. The statement did not mention the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran or Tehran's response of attacking its neighbours. Separate, almost identical disclosures were made to 'the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange by ADNOC Gas, ADNOC Drilling & Services, ADNOC Distribution, ADNOC Logistics & Services, Borouge and Fertiglobe. They said they are 'closely monitoring the situation in the United Arab Emirates and broader Gulf Region, and coordinating the relevant UAE authorities. The parent company, the 'Abu Dhabi National Oil Company', hasn’t made a public statement since Saturday, when a spokesperson said that operations continued without interruption. Fertiglobe was the only stock that remained unchanged. ADNOC Distribution, L&S and ADNOC Gas all saw steepest declines of?about 5%.
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Bessent, US Treasury Secretary, says that the oil market is well-supplied amid Iran war
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated?on?Wednesday that crude oil is well-supplied amid the U.S. and Israeli 'war in Iran. The crude markets are well-supplied. On the water, there are hundreds of millions of barrels away from the Gulf. Bessent told CNBC that, "more importantly, we will be making a series of announcements." The price of oil rose by?1% Wednesday after a?U.S. and Israeli strike on Iran disrupted Middle East supply. However, the gains were slower than in previous sessions because President Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy would be able to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said Tuesday that he also ordered the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation will provide financial and political guarantees to maritime trade in the Gulf. Bessent stated that the U.S. Navy would provide safe passage 'through the straits' for oil tankers if needed. Reporting by Susan Heavey and David Lawder; editing by Jan Harvey, Chizu Nomiyama, and Doina Chiacu
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Qatar's Petronet issues a force majeure order to its local buyers due to the Middle East crisis
In a filing to the stock exchange on Wednesday, India's largest gas importer, Petronet LNG Ltd. issued a "force majeure" notice to its supplier QatarEnergy and local buyers because its vessels are unable to reach Ras Laffan loading port due to the Middle East crisis. Fuel shipments have been disrupted by the U.S./Iran conflict. The transit through the Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and Oman - which carries one-fifth of the world's oil consumption as well as large amounts of liquefied - natural gas - has come to a near halt after some vessels in the area were hit. In a notice published late Tuesday, Petronet said that due to the current security situation and material risks to maritime navigation, it has issued to QatarEnergy a Force Majeure Notification for its LNG Tankers?Disha Raahi and Aseem. Petronet also notified its customers GAIL (Indian) Ltd, IOCL (Indian Oil Corp), and Bharat Petrol Corp. of force majeure. QatarEnergy also sent a notice to Petronet, "indicating that a potential event of Force Majeure could occur due to hostilities in the region", according to the Indian company. According to a report on Tuesday, Indian gas suppliers Indian Oil Corp. and GAIL have already cut gas supplies to industries such as fertiliser plants. Nidhi verma reported; Nivedita battacharjee edited.
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As the Middle East conflict escalates, airlines cancel flights
The global air travel industry is still severely affected by the Iran war, which forced the closure of key Middle Eastern hubs such as Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi. This left tens and thousands of passengers stranded and disrupted thousands of flights. The following is a list of the most recent flights by airline alphabetically: AEGEAN AIRLINES Greece's largest airline has suspended flights from and to Tel Aviv, Beirut and Erbil until early morning arrivals on March 10. Flights to and from Dubai, Abu -Dhabi and Riyadh will be suspended until evening arrivals on March 6 and flights from Jeddah and Riyadh until early morning arrivals on March 7. AIR BALTIC AirBaltic, a Latvian airline, said that all flights from and to Tel Aviv have been cancelled until March 9. AirBaltic said that all flights to and out of Tel Aviv have been cancelled until March 9. AIR CANADA The Canadian carrier plans to resume flights on March 23. AIR EUROPA Spanish Airlines has cancelled all flights from Tel Aviv to March 9th. AIR FRANCE KLM Air France cancelled flights from and to Tel Aviv, Beirut Dubai, Riyadh, and Beirut through March 5. KLM announced that flights from and to Dubai, Riyadh, and Dammam have been suspended until March 9, and flights from and to Tel Aviv will be suspended through the end of winter. CATHAY PACIFIC Hong Kong Airlines has announced that it will cancel all flights from and to Dubai, and Riyadh until March 14. The U.S. carrier has cancelled flights from New York and Tel Aviv until March 22, as well as from Tel Aviv and New York until March 23. EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES El?AL, and Sundor flight to and from Israel have been cancelled up until 2 a.m. March?5. EMIRATES All flights to and from Dubai are suspended until March 4, 2019. ETIHAD AERWAYS The UAE carrier suspended all flights from and to its Abu Dhabi hub up until 1000 GMT March 5th. FINNAIR The Finnish airline has cancelled Doha-Dubai flights until 28 March and will avoid the airspaces of Iraq, Iran and Syria. British Airways, owned by IAG, has cancelled flights from Amman to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Dubai as well as Doha, Tel Aviv and Doha-Doha. Iberia Express - IAG's low cost airline - has cancelled all flights between Tel Aviv and Tel Aviv until March 10. ITA AIRWAYS ITA Airways suspended all flights to and out of Tel Aviv, and will not be using the airspace in Israel, Lebanon Jordan, Iraq, and Iran before March 8. Dubai cancellations were extended until March 6th. Between March 2 and 4, Riyadh flights were cancelled. JAPAN AIRLINES Japan Airlines has suspended Tokyo-Doha scheduled flights from February 28 through March 14, and Doha-Tokyo until March 15. All flights from and to Tel Aviv have been cancelled by the Polish airline until March 18. The airline also cancelled flights from Riyadh and Dubai until 8 March. LUFTHANSA GROUP The German carrier group, which includes Lufthansa Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines has suspended flights from and to Tel Aviv, Beirut Amman Erbil Tehran and Tehran until 8 March and flights from and to Dubai Abu Dhabi and Larnaca 'until 6 March. MALAYSIA AIRLINES Malaysia Airlines has suspended all flights from and to Doha until 7 March. The Malaysian carrier temporarily resumed its return services from and to Jeddah, Madinah between March 4-8. NORWEGIAN AIR The Nordic airline will fly to Tel Aviv from June 15 instead of April 1 and 4, as originally planned. PEGASUS Turkish Airlines has cancelled all flights to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Iran until March 12 and until March 6. QATAR AIRWAYS The airline said that it has suspended flights from and to Doha because of the closure of Qatari aviation. SINGAPORE Airlines Singapore Airlines has cancelled all flights to and out of Dubai until March 7. Scoot, its low-cost airline, has cancelled flights from and to?Jeddah until March 7. Turkish Airlines has cancelled flights from and to?Bahrain and other countries such as Iran, Iraq and Jordan. They also have canceled flights from and to Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman and Qatar. WIZZ AIR Through March 7, the low-cost carrier halted all flights to and from Israel and Saudi Arabia. It also ceased flights between Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman, Jordan's capital. (Compiled by Josephine Mason and Jamie Freed; reporting by bureaus. Editing by Barbara Lewis and Louise Heavens; Christian Schmollinger; Matt Scuffham; and Milli Nissi Prussak.
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The US LNG producers are not able to replace the lost Qatari cargos immediately
According to calculations and industry analysts, the U.S. does not have the spare capacity needed to quickly increase output of liquefied gas to offset the loss in supply caused by Qatar's suspension of production due to the conflict in the Middle East. Analysts and calculations have shown that the U.S. has little spare capacity to quickly increase output of liquefied natural gas in order to offset lost supply after Qatar halted production due?to the conflict in the Middle East. LSEG data show that the U.S. is the world's biggest LNG producer and exports?nearly 19 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, which is converted to LNG. Qatar had to withdraw almost twice as much natural gas from the market after the wave of attacks on Monday. However, American export facilities are operating at full speed with the majority of cargoes being locked into long-term agreements. Alex Munton is the director of Global Gas and LNG for Rapidan Energy Group. He said, "There's no massive capacity sitting on the sidelines." Cheniere Energy, the world's largest LNG exporter, sold 46 million tons of LNG in 2012 and was drawing on Tuesday more than 7 billion cubic feet per day of feed gas to fuel its two Gulf Coast terminals. The company began producing from Train 5 at its Stage 3 expansion in Corpus Christi last week. However, it is expected to take a month for the relatively small unit to reach its full capacity. The majority of the work has been contracted. Cheniere said it would deliver on its customer commitments and was closely monitoring the Middle East. No. The second U.S. producer, Venture?Global, has the greatest flexibility in the short-term because it sells up to 4 bcfd in commissioning volumes at its Plaquemines facility in Louisiana on spot market. This gives Venture?Global more flexibility to redirect cargoes. CEO Mike 'Sabel said this during a Monday earnings call. Plaquemines can produce 35 million tonnes per year when fully operational, said Mike?Sabel. The project's initial approval was for?20 millions tons of annual production, but it was then increased to?27.2 million tons. The U.S. Department of Energy must sign off on the expansion. Venture Global can increase production by 800 million cubic feet a day if they receive the final approval quickly. Venture Global declines to comment further. The Golden Pass LNG Project, a joint venture of QatarEnergy with Exxon Mobil, is also expected to start initial production in this month. Demand for gas that will be converted to LNG should reach 800 million cubic feet a day for the 6 million ton per year facility. Analysts at EBW Analytics Group stated that the war could not "materially" increase the physical demand for U.S. Gas in the short to medium term. US, AUSTRALIA, AND QATAR ACCOUNTED FOR A LARGE PART OF GLOBAL LNG OUTPUT Energy analysts estimate that global gas consumption is 400 bcfd. According to the International Gas Union, about 60 percent of the global LNG production is produced in the U.S.A., Australia, and Qatar. Qatar sold around 10 billion cubic feet per day of LNG before it halted production. This was to buyers from Europe and Asia. Australia exports around?11 Bcfd. The flow capacity of smaller producers is limited. LSEG data show that LNG Canada is capable of producing up to 2 bcfd but currently produces about 1.5 bcfd. Gerald Ramdeen, chairman of the National Gas Company in Trinidad and Tobago said that it is diverting more gas from Trinidad and Tobago to Atlantic LNG in order to maximize exports. Atlantic could use 1.2 billion cubic feet per day of gas if one train is mothballed, and another is undergoing repair. According to LSEG, it was already nearing 1 bcfd and had room to add around 200 million cubic foot in the short-term. Calculations show that the new U.S. output that could be coming online soon will?unlikely exceed 2 bcfd and fall far short of what Qatar has left behind. Potential buyers would have to pay for transport vessels to be rerouted to the other side. Gas prices soared on Tuesday. The Dutch TTF benchmark hit a three-year-high near $19 per million Btu while the Japan-Korea Marker reached an eight-month-high near $13. According to the maritime data analytics platform Kpler, despite what will likely be a major LNG disruption, LNG diverts are not happening. Reporting by Curtis Williams from Houston and Scott DiSavino from New York, with editing by Nathan Crooks & David Gregorio
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Some small businesses don't think a refund of tariffs is worth the effort.
Friends began texting him to congratulate him the day after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the tariffs which had cost Day?Owl, a backpack company owned by Ian Rosenberger, tens and thousands of dollars. He did not share their joy. Rosenberger said, "I can't imagine any way that I could get the?money back." His Pittsburgh-based firm, which had only a few million dollars of sales, probably couldn't afford to pay for attorneys' fees. Around 2,000 companies have filed lawsuits for refunds at the U.S. Court of International Trade. This includes?FedEx?,?Costco?, and L'Oreal?, with many more likely to follow. The Supreme Court ruled February 20 that President Donald Trump had no authority to use emergency tariffs. Many businesses are now bracing themselves for a long fight to recover their money. Many small business owners have come to the conclusion, however, that while the ruling may look good on paper, recovering tariff costs won't be an easy task - if they can even do it at all. According to lawyers and business owners surveyed by, suing for refunds could divert time or money from running their businesses. The time spent by Wild Rye's CEO Cassie Abel on the team was enormous. "The number of conversations and analyses that we have done... has been massive," she said. Small businesses paid one-third of tariffs. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (USCC), 97% of U.S. Importers are small 'businesses. The tariffs that they paid will be a major headwind for 2025. Researchers at the Penn Wharton Budget Model of the University of Pennsylvania estimate that small businesses paid $55 billion of the $175 billion of tariffs to the U.S. Government. Oliver Dunford, an lawyer at the public interest law firm Pacific Legal Foundation, who represented Princess Awesome, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit against tariffs, said that some cash-strapped, small businesses will "just have to eat their losses." Legal considerations are an additional cost for smaller companies that have to deal with global uncertainty. Even small businesses who can afford to litigate take a wait-and?see approach. ECR4Kids makes learning and child-focused products such as toy boxes and cubbies. Its annual revenue is approximately $70 million. Lee Siegel, the founder and managing director of ECR4Kids, is delaying litigation for the time being, citing the lack of clarity in the court process and the uncertainty of the outcome. "I'm waiting to see what happens in a couple of weeks," Siegel said, whose firm has paid around $2 million for the tariffs that were subsequently rescinded. Siegel is looking to use refunds as a way to reduce the price of ECR4Kids’ unsold U.S. stock. A long and expensive court process may make them less valuable. He said that "the refund is important" but it would be more valuable if the process was completed sooner. This allows us to stabilise pricing. "NOT DIFFICULT OR NOVEL" Small business advocates claim the government already has the infrastructure in place to refund tariffs. "This is neither novel nor difficult," said Dan Anthony. He is the executive director of a coalition of small businesses called We Pay the Tariffs. In a press conference following the ruling, Trump said that "we will end up in court for five years over refunds." George Tuttle, an international trade expert and lawyer, says that the government may end up keeping some of the money in dispute if claimants cannot afford to fight. Eva St. Clair is the co-founder and CEO of Princess Awesome. She says that she hopes (the government) will refund us without further litigation, but hasn't completely ruled out taking legal action to recover $30,000 in tariffs. The cost is the biggest obstacle. PLF's Dunford represented her company, which was able to survive tariffs by collecting $8,000 in virtual tips from customers. St. Clair stated, "I cannot imagine the cost of paying a lawyer." Banks and hedge funds buy refund claims for about 40 cents per dollar. This allows some businesses to recover a portion of the claim without having to go through the legal process. Others, however, refuse to sell on principle. Michael O'Shaughnessy is the president of Element Electronics, a television supplier. His company has filed for a refund but he's not getting too excited. "Once the government has your money, it's gone forever." After tariffs went into effect, Rosenberger reduced Day Owl's reach and fired the head of an important sales channel. He said that sacrificing a refund would save his business. If I spend all my time with attorneys, I won't have time to sell backpacks.
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Chief commercial officer of Adidas Israel says that a bomb has hit an Adidas store in Israel
Adidas' chief commercial officer announced on Wednesday that a bomb had hit one of the company's franchise shops in Israel, but no injuries were reported. This was in the context of the ongoing war in Iran. Mathieu?Sidokpohou, Adidas' chief commercial officer, told journalists at a press briefing that "we had one franchise in Israel that was indeed attacked three days ago." He said, "Fortunately the store was closed so no one in our team was affected." "So far, the business has not been our top priority in that area. It's the people who come first." As the U.S. and Israel conflict with Iran escalated, many stores in Dubai as well as other major Middle Eastern hubs were forced to close or operate with a skeleton crew. Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden stated at the same conference that "we have people sitting in shelters". Adidas has 350 franchise and chain stores in six countries that are affected by 'the war. Gulden stated that Adidas would suffer a revenue impact from the closed?stores? in Middle East and delays with?some of their products being sent via air freight throughout the region. (Reporting and editing by Matthias Williams, Miranda Murray and Helen Reid)
Bousso: Trump's Hormuz shipping plans are too little too late to avoid energy shock.
The current plan of U.S. president Donald Trump to revive shipping in the Strait of Hormuz through financial guarantees and security assistance requires a?herculean effort on behalf of international partners.
Even if it is successful, the relief will be limited as the time to avoid the worst economic consequences of the closing of this vital energy route is rapidly running out.
Trump said Tuesday that he had directed the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (IDFC) to provide financial guarantees and political risk insurance for maritime trade within the Gulf. He said that the U.S. Navy would begin escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz - the 'narrow shipping lane' between Iran and Oman, through which a fifth of the world's oil and gas is normally transported.
Washington is taking these measures to relieve pressure on the global energy market after the traffic through the Strait virtually halted on Saturday, following the launch of the joint U.S. and Israeli aerial bombardment against Iran.
Tehran responded by striking the neighbouring countries including their energy infrastructure and forcing the closure of Qatar's LNG production as well as Saudi Arabia's biggest oil refinery.
At least four other tankers were also attacked in or near Hormuz. This prompted many ship insurance companies and charterers suspending transit into and out of Gulf. Brent oil prices rose to $84 per barrel, their highest level since July 2024, after the closure. Stock markets in Asia were also sent tumbling as investors braced themselves for an economic shock.
Under the current circumstances, however, it is unlikely that the U.S. will reassure shippers.
In recent days, tanker freight rates have increased dramatically. Many routes are now at record levels. Chartering a crude ship capable of transporting 2 million barrels from the Gulf of Mexico to Asia costs $30 million. This is roughly 5% of cargo value at current rates and five times the cost at the beginning of the year.
A MUCH BIGGER CHALLENGE
Reduced costs will not reduce the risk of attack on vessels. U.S. Naval escorts could certainly reduce the risk but are unlikely to provide full protection from Iran's use of drones missiles and fast attack boats.
Washington's intervention to secure shipping routes in the region is not the first time.
During the "Tanker War", phase of the Iran/Iraq Conflict in the late 1980s the U.S. escorted Kuwaiti oil tanks under Operation Earnest Will, to deter Iranian attacks.
Today, the scale of this challenge is much?larger.
Since then, oil and gas exports have almost doubled to 20 million bpd. Qatar, the second largest LNG producer in the world, exported 80 million metric tonnes of LNG last year, which is about a fifth global demand. It wasn't a major player on the energy market in the 1980s.
It would be an enormous task to secure such huge volumes of oil, gasoline and tankers. Other countries' navy would most likely need assistance.
Even more important, it would take weeks, or even days to organize such an effort.
TIME IS FLYING BY
Both producers and consumers are running out of time.
Already, the blockade of Hormuz is forcing Gulf producers into reducing their output. Iraq reduced production by over 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) on Tuesday, or roughly one quarter of the total amount of oil produced, due to lack of storage capacity. Officials warned that if the disruption continues, production could drop by over 3 million bpd in a matter of days.
Similar constraints apply to other producers.
Saudi Arabia is the largest crude oil exporter in the world. It shipped 7 million barrels per day (bpd) during February. Now, it's diverting some of its output to Yanbu, a Red Sea port, via a pipeline that can handle 5 million barrels per day. Yanbu has a maximum export capacity of 2 million barrels per day, which means that the Saudi Arabian kingdom is forced to store large amounts onshore.
According to Kayrros, Saudi Arabia has already stored 82 million barrels in its onshore storage facilities, which is around 56% of the capacity.
United Arab Emirates can divert up 1.5 million barrels per day through a pipeline bypassing Hormuz. Kayrros explained that this would mean tapping into storage which is currently around 40% full. About 34 million barrels are already held.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE could be forced to cut production further as a result of this.
ASIA'S ENERGY CRUSH
Consumers are also under increasing pressure.
Asian refiners, who are heavily dependent on Middle Eastern oil, are struggling to replace their supplies and will likely cut operating rates. Due to the shortage of oil, two Chinese refineries already have reduced their runs. India has also curtailed its gas supply to its industrial base.
The shock has rippled through the Asian financial markets. South Korea's KOSPI index has fallen 18% this week on concerns that Middle Eastern energy could disrupt the country's manufacturing and petrochemical sectors.
The main question is how long will the war last. Trump has said that the war could last for weeks. However, even if Trump's plans to reopen Hormuz are successful, it may not be possible to wait.
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(source: Reuters)