Middle East

The Santos Port Authority in Brazil, which manages the largest southern hemisphere port, has said that the port's draft will be deepened in order to attract larger ships in coming years. Beto Mendes (director of port operations) said that the goal is to increase the draft from 16 to 17 meters by 2031. Attracting larger ships would allow Brazil's commercial ties to be strengthened with partners like China, who is currently in a trade conflict with the United States. Mendes stated during a presentation that "we need to be ready." Santos will see an increase in shipping volumes as a...

Hassan Fadlallah, a Hezbollah legislator, said that the Iran-aligned movement is prepared to begin talks with the Lebanese Government on a national defense strategy. The focus will be on ensuring Israel's removal from Lebanon. Three Lebanese sources have confirmed that the U.S.-backed president Joseph Aoun is about to begin talks with Hezbollah regarding its arsenal of weapons. Aoun pledged in January to establish a monopoly state control over arms. Hezbollah, one of the most heavily-armed non-state organizations in the world, was severely weakened by the conflict with Israel that began 2024, which was caused by the Gaza War. The group...

The Egyptian presidency announced on Tuesday that Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi discussed with U.S. president Donald Trump mediation efforts to restore calm in the region, which would have positive impacts on Red Sea Navigation and stop economic losses for both parties. Since Israel's war against Hamas in late 2023 began, the Iran-aligned Houthis are said to have launched more than 100 maritime attacks. They claim they were doing so in solidarity with Gaza’s Palestinians. The attacks disrupted the global economy and sent the U.S. Military on a costly missile interception campaign. Trump had said on Tuesday morning that he...

Saudi Aramco's official selling prices for LPG (liquefied petroleum gases) in April are unchanged from those of March. Sonatrach, however, has cut its OSPs between 2-7% because of a weaker Mediterranean demand, according to traders on Monday. Aramco’s April OSP was $615 per metric tonne. Butane costs $605 per ton , traders said. LPG comes in two types: propane and butane. They have different boiling points. LPG is primarily used as a fuel for heating and cars, as well as as a feedstock to make other petrochemicals. Sonatrach has cut its April OSP (Off-Season Price) for propane from $550 to...

This week, the European Union began a ban on reexporting Russian LNG via EU ports. The goal is to reduce Moscow’s revenue after its invasion in Ukraine. The ban prohibiting the reloading Russian cargoes in EU ports to export to third-country countries was implemented in June 2024. A moratorium will be in place until March 26th 2025 for contracts that were signed before June 25th last year. Gas experts claim that the measure will have little effect, as the transshipments via EU ports into Asia represents less than 10% total Russian LNG exports. However, suppliers will direct this volume towards...

This week, the European Union's (EU) ban on reexporting Russian LNG via EU ports came into force. The EU's goal is to reduce Moscow’s revenue after its invasion of Ukraine. The ban prohibiting the reloading Russian cargoes in EU ports to export to a third country was implemented in June 2024. A moratorium will be enforced until March 26th, 2025, for contracts that were signed before June 25, 2018. Gas experts claim that the measure will have little effect, as transshipments via EU ports into Asia represents less than 10% total Russian LNG exports. However, suppliers would direct this volume...

Calculations based on data from the industry showed that Russia's rail-exports of liquefied petrol gas (LPG), which were a result of European sanctions, fell by 24% in January and February compared to last year, reaching 451,000 metric tonnes. The European Union imposed sanctions on Russian LPG due to the conflict in Ukraine on December 20, 2018. Poland, one Russia's biggest LPG importers, proposed the restrictions last year. LPG (or propane and butane) is used primarily as a fuel for cars and heating, and also to make other petrochemicals. The majority of Russia's LPG exports are shipped by rail, with the...

The major Gulf stock markets were up slightly on Monday morning as investors waited for clarity about the next tariffs from U.S. president Donald Trump amid increased geopolitical tensions in the region. Trump's reciprocal duties, which are due to go into effect on April 2, will likely fuel inflation and stunt the economy. Trump said on Friday there could be some flexibility with tariffs. This would potentially reduce their impact. Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index rose 0.1% thanks to a 1.3% increase in Saudi Arabian Mining Company. Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction, on the other hand, soared by...

Industry sources report that sales of marine fuel are slowing down at major refuelling stations around the world at the beginning of the year, as the shipping industry struggles with geopolitical uncertainty and the impact of rising tariffs on the global trade. Official data revealed that marine fuel sales in the first two month of 2025 at the world's No.1 and 3 refuelling hubs - Singapore and Fujairah, both in the United Arab Emirates - totaled 9.78 million metric tonnes (62.09 millions barrels), down 9% compared to the same period last year. Singapore's marine fuel sales in February hit a...

The Saudi index is on track to end its three-session winning streak. Palestinian health officials said that Israeli air strikes in Gaza have killed more than 300. This threatens to bring down a two-month truce as Israel vows to use force to release its remaining hostages. Donald Trump has also vowed that the U.S. will continue its assault against Yemen's Houthis until they stop their attacks on ships on the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index fell 0.3% as a result of a 1.4% drop in Saudi Aramco, the oil giant that traded ex-dividend. Dubai's main stock index dropped...

Data shows that a second tanker subject to U.S. sanction is moored at the Syrian port Banias, and could deliver a cargo of diesel from Russia. This comes as Moscow and Damascus are strengthening their ties. Moscow supported former Syrian autocrat Bashar al-Assad for more than 10 years of civil war, but now wants to improve its relations with Ahmed al-Sharaa as it wants to keep the two Russian military bases in Syria. According to LSEG, the Barbados flagged Proxima with approximately 30,000 metric tonnes of diesel left Primorsk back in February. It is currently drifting near Banias as it...

DP World, a Dubai owned ports and logistics firm, reported a 28 percent fall in its annual profit on Friday, partly because of higher finance costs. It also highlighted global trade uncertainty and geopolitical risk as clouding the outlook. DP World announced that the profit attributable by owners after accounting for items separately dropped from $820 to $591 millions a year ago. In a statement, Chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem stated that "while the year started on a good note, global trade is still in flux because of ongoing geopolitical issues." DP World's revenue rose by 9.7%, to...

Chris Wright, the U.S. Energy secretary, said that President Donald Trump could increase pressure on Iran by stopping its oil exports. This would be part of his plan to put pressure on Tehran regarding its nuclear program. Trump's return to the White House in January, after his first term, when he rescinded the United States' 2015 power agreement with Tehran and imposed restrictions on its oil sales, has once again brought a more aggressive approach towards the Middle Eastern country over its nuclear activities. Wright said during a trip to Abu Dhabi that he believed Gulf allies were very concerned...

The oil prices fell by more than two dollars per barrel on Thursday. This erased the previous session's gains as investors re-evaluated a planned pause of sweeping U.S. Tariffs, and shifted their focus to an intensifying trade war between Washington, D.C., and Beijing. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures dropped $2.28 or 3.7% to settle at 60.07 per barrel. Brent crude futures dropped $2.15 or 3.3% to $63.33 per barrel. Both contracts gained more than 2 dollars a barrel after U.S. president Donald Trump suspended the heavy tariffs that he announced against dozens U.S. trading partner a week earlier, marking...

The oil prices dropped by around 1% as U.S. president Donald Trump intensified his trade war against China. He also announced a 90 day pause in tariffs on other countries. Brent futures dropped 73 cents or 1.1% to $64.73 a barge by 01:08 a.m. GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude futures declined 49 cents or 0.8% to $61.86. On Wednesday, the benchmarks settled 4% higher after falling as much as 7 % during the session. Trump increased the tariff rate on China from 104% to 125%. This is effective immediately. China has also announced a new import tax on U.S....

Kuwait, an oil-rich country, cut off electricity temporarily in certain industrial and agricultural zones on Wednesday due to a surge in demand caused by the hot weather. This was outstripping power plant generating capacity which had been limited because of maintenance. Kuwait, which is a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), resorted last summer to load-shedding, for the first time since years, due to an increase in demand, urbanization and delays with plant maintenance. According to posts on X by the Ministry of Electricity, Wednesday's power outages lasted for less than two hours. The temperature has risen...

Calculations showed that the average daily supply of natural gas to Europe through the TurkStream pipeline, owned by Russian energy giant Gazprom, fell 19.4% from a year earlier in March. The only remaining transit route for Russian gas into Europe is through Turkey after Ukraine decided not to renew a transit agreement with Moscow that expired in January. Based on data provided by the European Gas Transmission Group Entsog, calculations showed that Russian gas exported via the TurkStream pipe fell to 45 million cubic meters (mcms) per day from 55.8 millions cubic metres per days in February. This was also...

Oil prices fell on Monday and are heading towards a modest quarter-loss, despite warnings from U.S. president Donald Trump, who warned that he could impose secondary tariffs against buyers of Russian crude oil if he felt Moscow was blocking his efforts in ending the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures for June, the more active contract, fell 30 cents or 0.4% to $72.46 a barrel by 0330 GMT. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate oil declined 33 cents or 0.5% to $69.03 a barrel. Brent front-month, down 26 cents or 0.4% at $73.36, expires on Monday. Both benchmarks are on track...

Oil prices fell on Monday and are heading towards a small quarterly loss, despite warnings from U.S. president Donald Trump about secondary tariffs if he believes that Moscow is preventing him from ending the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures for June, the more active contract, fell 17 cents or 0.2% to $72.59 a barge by 0028 GMT. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate oil declined 18 cents or 0.3% to $69.18 a barge. Brent front-month, up 8 cents or 0.1% at $73.71, expires on Monday. Both benchmarks recorded a weekly gain for the third time in a row on Friday....

The office of President Yoweri Mueveni said that Uganda signed an agreement on Saturday with UAE-based Alpha MBM Investments to acquire a 60% share in the crude oil refinery at Kabaale in Hoima District. The country's state-run Uganda National Oil Company will retain the remaining 40% stake in the 60,000-barrel-per-day refinery, according to the statement. In addition to the refinery agreement, Ugandan and UAE investors signed five more agreements in different sectors. Uganda's Energy Minister said earlier this year that the country is in negotiations with Alpha MBM Investments to build a planned oil refinery worth $4 billion. Website of...

Two sources who have direct knowledge of this matter, but spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the talks to restart Kurdish crude oil exports via the Iraq-Turkey pipe are at a standstill due to a lack in clarity regarding payments and contracts. Negotiations, which began in late February, failed to resolve a standoff of nearly two years that had halted the flow of goods from Iraqi Kurdistan, in the northern part of the country, to Turkey's Mediterranean Port of Ceyhan. Last month, it was reported that the Trump administration has asked Iraq for a restart of the shipments...

In a group message that accidentally revealed plans by the U.S. for an attack on Yemen's Iran aligned Houthis, senior Trump officials including Vice President JDVance and Defense Sec Pete Hegseth accused Europe "freeloading" The attacks by the Houthis on ships in Red Sea have impacted trade between Europe and the U.S. What is the situation in the Red Sea? In response to threats by the Houthis to resume attacks on ships crossing the Red Sea, the U.S. launched massive military strikes against them on 16 March that resulted in the death of at least 31 people. The Houthis, a...

Hayan Abdel Ghani, Iraq's Oil Minister, has claimed that Iranian oil tanks seized by U.S. troops in the Gulf used forged Iraqi documentation. The Trump administration has re-instituted "maximum" pressure on Iran. This is a new policy that seeks a way to isolate Iran from the global economic system and to eliminate its oil revenue to slow down Tehran's nuclear weapons development. Abdel-Ghani, was asked whether he received any messages from the United States regarding the possibility of sanctions being imposed on the state oil marketing company SOMO for violating Iranian sanctions. The oil minister told state television that he...

According to LSEG, a government official and local television, two tankers that have been hit by U.S. Sanctions are expected to deliver Russian Arctic Oil to Syria for the very first time. This comes just days after Moscow delivered its first diesel to Syria in over a decade. According to pro-government Syria TV and a government source, one of the tankers Aquatica with 100,000 tons of Russian crude oil aboard is expected to unload at Baniyas soon. According to the television report and a government source, the vessel arrived on Friday, but it has not yet been unloaded. LSEG data...