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Trump says that a deadly Russian attack on Kyiv may set peace efforts back
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, suggested on Friday that a Russian missile attack?on an apartment building in Kyiv, which killed 24 people - including three children - could impede efforts to find a peaceful solution to Moscow's conflict in Ukraine. Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he and President Xi Jinping had talked about the conflict and agreed to end the fighting. "This is a matter that we would like to see resolved. It was looking good until last night. But the Ukrainians took a big hit last night. It's going to happen (the ending of the war). It's a shame," Trump stated, referring to the Russian attack. After laying red flowers at the rubble of an apartment building, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy demanded that Moscow be punished for its strike. Russia has confirmed that Ukrainian drones killed four people in an overnight attack on the city of Ryazan, including a child. Both sides claim they don't deliberately target civilians. Next week, Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to China and meet Xi. Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin's?spokesman, told reporters that the exact dates will be announced shortly. Peskov stated that Putin hoped to discuss Trump’s China -visit with Xi as well?as bilateral ties and international issues. Trevor Huunnicutt, Jarrett Renshaw, and Susan Heavey contributed additional reporting from Washington. Gleb Bryanski/Andrew Osborn edited the article.
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Price hikes and outlook cuts are used by airlines to combat the fuel price surge.
The aviation industry was blindsided by the sudden increase in jet fuel costs from $85 to $100 to $150 to $200 per barrel during the U.S./Israeli war on Iran. Fuel accounts for as much as a quarter or more of the operating costs, which has forced airlines to increase fares and re-evaluate their financial forecasts. Here is an alphabetical list of the ways airlines are responding to this issue: AEGEAN AIRLINES The Greek airline anticipates that the suspension of Middle East flights, as well as a spike in fuel costs will have "a significant impact" on its first-quarter results. AIRASIA X A Malaysian airline said that it will suspend its services between Melbourne and Denpasar, and Adelaide and Denpasar on June 18, due to higher fuel prices. Executives had previously stated that the airline has cut 10% of its flights and imposed a fuel surcharge of around 20%. AIR CANADA Fuel price volatility has caused Canada's largest carrier to suspend its full-year forecast. The company had announced previously that it would reduce four of its daily flights from New York to just 38 due to rising fuel prices. AIR CHINA, CHINA SOUTHERN AIRLINES, REGIONAL CHINESE CARRIER Chinese airlines are increasing fuel surcharges on domestic flights starting May 16. Surcharges will range from 30 to 90 Yuan ($4-$13) for flights less than 800 km. Surcharges for longer routes will rise by up to 170 yuan. AIR FRANCE-KLM The airline group expects to pay $2.4 billion more in fuel this year. The airline group has downgraded the full-year forecast for capacity growth to an increase between 2% and 4%. Previously, it had guided to a 3% to 5 percent increase. The airline announced earlier that it would be increasing the price of long-haul tickets to address rising fuel costs. Cabin fares will increase by 50 euros ($58). KLM, the Dutch subsidiary of the group, announced on April 16 that it would cancel 160 flights across Europe in the next month due to increasing fuel prices. AIR INDIA Between June and August, the Indian carrier will temporarily reduce flights on several international destinations. Bloomberg News reported that the airline was considering furloughing employees who are not technical and reducing flight capacity more than 20% over the next three month. Air India said that it will also revise the fuel surcharge, moving from a flat surcharge for domestic flights to a grid based on distance. The company said that surcharges for international routes do not compensate the steep rise in fuel costs. AIR NEW ZEALAND The New Zealand airline said that it will review its capital expenditure plans and the timing for aircraft deliveries in order to better align themselves with market demand. It was one of the first carriers to announce a large increase in ticket prices as the conflict began. The airline warned that further capacity consolidation could occur if fuel costs remain high. AIR TRANSAT Canadian Airlines said that it will reduce its planned capacity of 6% between May and October this year. The airline expects to make cuts on routes to Europe, the Caribbean and Cuba, while suspending service until October. AKASA AIR India's Akasa Airlines introduced a fuel charge ranging from 199 to 1,300 Indian Rupees ($2 - $14) for domestic and international flights. ALASKA AIR Fuel prices are rising sharply, putting pressure on airline margins. The carrier had previously withdrawn its profit forecast for the full year and warned that earnings would be severely affected in the second quarter. The carrier has also reduced capacity in certain markets. AMERICAN AIRLINES The U.S. airline slashed their 2026 profit projection, pushing lower expectations to a deficit, and stated that it expected jet fuel costs to rise by more than 4 billion dollars this year. The government has increased the fees for checked bags on domestic flights and short-haul international flight by $50 for the third bag and $10 for the second bag. It also reduced certain benefits for economy passengers. According to the Japanese airline, higher fuel costs will increase its costs by approximately 140 billion yen (883,3 million dollars) this year. However, cost reductions, fares, and hedging are expected to reduce that impact to about 60 billion yen. The airline is also looking at a domestic fuel charge for the fiscal year beginning April 2027. ASIANA AIRLINES Newsis reported that the South Korean airline would cut 22 flights from April to July because of fuel price increases. CATHAY PACIFIC Hong Kong Airlines said it will reduce fuel surcharges on most flights starting May 16, as part of its "agile response" in response to the fluctuation of jet fuel prices. CEBU AIR In response to the rising fuel prices, the Philippine-based airline announced that it has implemented fare adjustments as well as surcharges in various parts of its network. DELTA AIR LINES Delta announced that it would reduce capacity by approximately 3.5 percentage points compared to its original plan, and increase fees for checked baggage in order to offset the costs of jet fuel. The increase will be $10 on the first and second bags and $50 on third bags. The U.S. carrier pulled back on all capacity increases for the second quarter, and forecast profits below Wall Street expectations. EASYJET EasyJet has warned that it will suffer a larger half-year loss before tax of 540-560 millions pounds ($721-748million), which includes 25 million pound in additional fuel costs for March. FRONTIER Airlines According to The Wall Street Journal, a group of U.S. low-cost airlines, including Frontier Airlines has proposed a $2.5 billion plan for relief to the U.S. Government. The report stated that the figure was based on the amount of jet fuel the group is expecting to spend this year in comparison to previous forecasts. Fuel prices have increased dramatically since the carrier's forecast, and it has stated that it will be reviewing it. GREATER BAY Airlines The Hong Kong based company said that it would increase fuel surcharges for most routes on April 1 and keep them the same on routes to mainland China and Japan. HONG KONG Airlines The airline announced that it would increase fuel surcharges up to 35% starting March 12. The biggest increases would be on flights between Hong Kong, Bangladesh, and Nepal where the charges would go from HK$284 to HK$384 (US$49). IAG, the owner of British Airways, warned that its annual profit will be lower than anticipated due to rising jet fuel prices and supply disruptions. It had previously stated that it would increase ticket prices in order to reflect the higher fuel costs. Despite fuel hedges, the company was "not immune" from the wider fallout of fuel price volatility. INDIGO India's largest airline announced that it will introduce fuel charges for domestic and international flights starting March 14. The charge for flights into the Middle East is 900 rupees and for flights into Europe, 2,300 rupees. JETBLUE AERWAYS JetBlue has suspended its full-year forecast and announced that it will slow hiring, reduce capacity and raise fares in order to mitigate the impact of rising fuel costs. Sources with knowledge on the subject say that KOREAN Air entered emergency management mode in April as oil prices rose. LATAM AIRLINES Fuel prices have increased, causing the airline to cut its core earnings forecast for 2026. LUFTHANSA The German airline group has said that it will be hit by jet fuel prices of 1.7 billion euros in 2026. ITA Airways, a member of the group, announced that it would increase ticket prices by between 5% to 10% in 2026, to compensate for rising fuel costs. The Lufthansa Group announced in April a new low-cost "Economy Basic", which limits free carry-on luggage to a laptop bag or small backpack. The airline had previously cut 20,000 short-haul flight from its schedule until October, claiming that it was the equivalent of 40,000 metric tonnes of jet fuel. PAKISTAN INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS The airline said that it would raise domestic fares up to $20, and international fares up to $100. It cited higher fuel surcharges as the reason for this. QANTAS AIRWAYS Qantas, an Australian airline, said that it has delayed a planned A$150-million ($107-million) buyback. It also increased its fuel estimate for the second half 2026 from A$2.5 billion to A$3.1-3.33 billion. RYANAIR Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, warned that the airline's profits could be "a little under pressure" if oil prices continue to rise in the fiscal year that ends March 2027. Scandinavian Airlines announced that it would cancel 1,00 flights in April due to high jet fuel and oil prices. In March, the airline had cancelled "couple hundred" of flights. SPIRIT AIRLINES Low-cost carriers in the United States have abruptly shut down after collapsing due to financial pressures. This includes the steep rise in fuel prices. SPRING AIRLINES Chinese budget airline, China Airlines, announced that it will increase fuel surcharges for domestic flights starting April 5. SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWAST AIRLINES The U.S. airline forecast a second-quarter profit that was below the market's expectations. Its CEO also warned of a fuel price spike that would cost the airline billions in the quarter. The previous increase in the cost of checked bags was $10. The Portuguese airline claimed that price increases would partially offset the impact of fuel price changes on revenue. THAI AIRASIA Thai low-cost airline said that it would reduce its overall seat capacity by an average of 30 percent between May and July to offset the impact of rising fuel prices and a softening of demand. THAI AIRWAYS The Thailand-based airline said that it would increase fares between 10% and 15% in order to combat rising fuel prices. The European airline, tour operator and travel agency cut their full-year profit forecast and suspended revenue guidance. They said they had incurred extra costs of about 40 million euro due to the March war, including repatriation and operational disruptions. TURKISH AIRLINES LUFTHANSA SunExpress, the joint venture between Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa and Lufthansa announced that it would charge a temporary fuel fee of 10 euros for each passenger on routes connecting Turkey with mainland Europe. The fuel surcharge will apply to all bookings made after April 1, for departures after May 1. Turkish Airlines announced on April 10, that it would not be distributing any dividends from its net profit for 2025, instead choosing to keep the earnings and preserve cash. T'WAY AIR South Korean low cost carrier, South Korean Low-cost Airlines, announced that it would furlough cabin crew in May and/or June without pay as part of measures to address the effects of war. UNITED AIRLINES Scott Kirby, CEO of the U.S. airline, said that ticket prices could need to increase by up to 15% or 20% in order to offset an increase in fuel costs. The company had already implemented five fare hikes late in the first-quarter, along with increased baggage fees that it claimed were helping to offset rising fuel prices. The carrier forecasted second-quarter and annual profits that were below Wall Street expectations. It said it would recover only 40-50% through fares and revenue measures during the second quarter. This figure was expected to improve to 70-80% by the third quarter and up to 85-100% in the fourth. VIETJET A potential fuel shortage has led to the Vietnamese budget airline reducing flight frequencies on certain routes. VIETNAM?AIRLINES Vietnam's Aviation Authority announced that the carrier will cancel 23 flights per day on domestic routes starting in April after it requested assistance from the government to remove an environment tax on jet fuel. VIRGIN ATLANTIC Corneel Kster, the CEO of the airline, told The Financial Times that despite adding fuel surcharges on fares this year it will be difficult to achieve profitability. VIRGIN AUSTRALIA Virgin Australia has said that it expects fuel costs to increase by around A$30-40million in the second half of the fiscal year and a reduction of 1% in capacity for the fourth quarter. VOLOTEA The Spanish low cost airline has introduced a new pricing strategy that links ticket prices with fuel costs. This could add an additional surcharge after purchase of up to fourteen euros per passenger per flight. WESTJET Globe and Mail reports that the Canadian airline has reduced seat capacity in June. The Canadian Press reported previously that the airline would add C$60 ($44.50) to certain bookings, and combine flights due to rising costs. WIZZ AIR Low-cost carrier revised upwards its guidance, citing strong bookings in advance and quick action to offset rising fuel prices and flight cancelations by adding capacity on new and existing routes and using promotional rates. The company had warned of a possible profit drop at the beginning of the Iran War.
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Trump announces China will buy 200 Boeing jets. Order could reach 750
The United States has confirmed that China will buy '200 Boeing jets. This order could grow to '750 planes. Donald Trump told reporters Friday that the planes will have General Electric engines. Trump told reporters that the deal included "approximately 200 planes, and a guarantee of up to 775 if they perform well". The deal was not made public immediately. It is unclear which type of jets will be ordered and when they will arrive. If finalized, the orders would be Boeing's largest Chinese deal in almost a decade. The U.S. aircraft manufacturer had been largely excluded from the second-largest market for aviation due to trade tensions between Beijing and Washington. The shares of the U.S. aircraft manufacturer had fallen?nearly 4 percent on Thursday, after Trump told Fox News Channel China had agreed that they would buy 200 jets. This figure was far below what analysts had expected. In premarket trading, they were down a little over 1% on Friday. Sources said that an order of roughly 500 jets would be 'under discussion' before the meeting between Trump & Xi Jinping. If it happens, an order for more than 500 jets would be the biggest in aviation history. Boeing CEO 'Kelly Ortberg' and GE Aerospace Chief Executive Larry Culp are among the American executives that accompanied Trump to China with hopes of clinching a deal or resolving a business dispute. Trump would also benefit from the deal, as his aggressive tariffs and other trade policies have failed to reduce the U.S.'s large trade deficit.
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Airline cancellations in response to Middle East conflict
Middle Eastern carriers increased capacity following the Iran War, and airlines outside the Gulf have rerouted flights between Europe & Asia away from major hubs within the region. The latest flight information is listed below alphabetically. AEGEAN AIRLINES On May 21, Greece's largest airline will resume flights from Heraklion to Tel Aviv, Rhodes and Larnaca. Thessaloniki-Tel Aviv flights are cancelled up until June 26. Flights to Riyadh, Amman and Erbil will resume on May 21. Flights to Dubai will be cancelled until June 29. Erbil, Baghdad and Baghdad flights are also cancelled until July 2. AEROFLOT The Russian flag carrier announced that it will?resume? flights to the United Arab Emirates as of June 1. AIRBALTIC AirBaltic, a Latvian airline, has announced that flights to Tel Aviv are cancelled until the 28th of June. Dubai flights are cancelled until 24 October. AIR CANADA The Canadian carrier has canceled flights to Tel Aviv, Dubai and Abu Dhabi until September 7. AIR EUROPA Spanish Airlines has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv from June 9 until now. AIR FRANCE-KLM Air France has suspended flights to Riyadh, Riyadh and Beirut until May 27, and Tel Aviv and Dubai until May 19 KLM suspends flights to Riyadh Dammam, and Dubai until 28 June. CATHAY PACIFIC Hong Kong Airlines has suspended all flights to Dubai, Riyadh and cargo services until May 31, and until June 30, respectively. The airline plans to operate all scheduled flight beyond June. The U.S. carrier plans to resume New York JFK-Tel Aviv flights from September 6 and has extended the suspension of service for Atlanta-Tel Aviv until November 30. The airline said that the launch of its Boston-Tel Aviv flight, scheduled for late October, has been postponed until further notice. EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES All flights to Dubai have been cancelled until 31 May. FINNAIR Finnair has cancelled all Doha flights up until July 2 and is continuing to avoid the airspace over Iraq, Iran Syria, and Israel. The airline will not resume Dubai flights until October. British Airways, owned by IAG, will reduce flights to the Middle East once services resume. Jeddah is no longer a destination. From July 1, it plans to reduce the number of flights to Dubai, Doha, and Tel Aviv from two daily flights to just one. Riyadh will be reduced from two daily flights down to just one starting in mid-May. The changes will be in effect until the end of the summer season on October 24. One Dubai service will restart on?October 16 Iberia Express, the Spanish low-cost carrier of IAG, has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv until May 31. JAPAN AIRLINES Japan Airlines has suspended its scheduled Tokyo-Doha and Doha-Tokyo flight until June 30, and Doha-Tokyo until July 1. The Polish airline has suspended flights from Tel Aviv to June 12. The airline also cancelled flights from March 31 until June 27 to Beirut and Riyadh. LOT will operate its winter route from Dubai to Riyadh in October. LUFTHANSA GROUP Austrian Airlines plans to restart flights to Tel Aviv on June 1. SWISS, ITA Airways, and Lufthansa plan to resume flights in July. Brussels Airlines suspended its operations until October 24, ITA Airways, SWISS and Lufthansa will continue to suspend their flights to Dubai through September 13. Lufthansa has suspended flights to Abu Dhabi, Amman and Beirut. SWISS has also suspended flights to Dammam and Riyadh. Erbil, Muscat, and Tehran have been suspended until October 24. Eurowings, a low-cost airline, has suspended its flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut until July 9, Erbil and Dubai until June 22, and Amman and Abu Dhabi until October 24. ITA Airways has also extended its suspension of flights to Riyadh until June 30. MALAYSIA AIRLINES From June 2, the Malaysian airline will resume limited service to Doha. NORWEGIAN AIR The low-cost carrier has delayed the launch of its Tel Aviv?and Beirut'services until June 15 PEGASUS Pegasus Airlines, Turkey's national airline, has cancelled all flights to Iran, Iraq Kuwait, Bahrain, Dammam Riyadh Abu Dhabi Sharjah until June 1. QANTAS, Australia's flag-carrier, is increasing flights to Rome and Paris in response to a surge in demand for European destinations. The number of flights to Paris is increasing from three to five per week. Perth-Singapore will also increase from daily service to 10 per week. A new schedule will be implemented gradually for flights starting in mid-April. It will run through late July. QATAR AIRWAYS On May 13, the Qatari airline announced that it would resume operations in Abu Dhabi. The airline will also expand its international flight network from June 16 to include more than 150 destinations. ROYAL MAROC Moroccan airline said that flights to Doha and Dubai were cancelled until the end of June. SINGAPORE Airlines In response to increased demand, the carrier has extended its Singapore-Dubai flight suspension until August 2. It also added services on Singapore-London Gatwick (late March) and Singapore-Melbourne (late March-October 24). TURKISH AIRLINES SunExpress, Turkish Airlines joint venture with Lufthansa has cancelled flights until June 30, including to Dubai, Bahrain and Erbil. WIZZ AIR Low-cost airlines will resume their flights to Tel Aviv from May 28, but flights to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, as well as flights to Amman in Jordan remain suspended until the middle of September. All flights to Medina have been suspended permanently. (Compiled by Josephine Mason and Jamie Freed. Elviira Loma, Tiago Branao, Agnieszka Olenka, Bernadette HOG, Boleslaw LaSocki, Romolo Tosiani, and Bernadette Hogg. Matt Scuffham and Alexander Smith edited by Susan Fenton, Milla Nissi, Milla Nissi, Milla Nissi, Milla Nissi, Milla Nissi-Prussak.
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Shipping data shows that a fourth Malaysian-linked vessel transits the Strait of Hormuz.
LSEG shipping data revealed on 'Friday that a support vessel belonging to Malaysian firm 'Vantris Energy (formerly Sapura Energy) passed through the Strait of Hormuz. This is the fourth'ship associated with the country to -transit this waterway since the U.S.Iran War began. Two people with knowledge of the situation said that the Sapura 1200 was one of seven ships for which the Malaysian government sought permission from Iran in order to open the Strait. The strait has been largely closed since the conflict began in late February, disrupting global energy supply, they added. LSEG data revealed that the ship entered the Muscat port after passing through the strait and hewing near the Iranian coast. Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia's prime minister, said that after holding talks with Iranian officials in March,?Iran will allow Malaysian ships to pass through the Strait. Authorities have said that the ships Malaysia has asked to be cleared include those belonging to Vantris, shipping company MISC Berhad, and the state energy firm Petronas . Serifos (a Liberian flagged Very Large Crude Carrier) that exited April 10th, was also cleared as a ship linked to Malaysia. The tanker that was loaded with crude oil from Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates early in March discharged its cargo on Malaysia's Malacca Port on April 30. Ocean Thunder, a VLCC loaded with 'Iraqi Crude' and chartered by an unit of Petronas passed through the Strait on April 5, and discharged 1 million barrels Basrah heavy crude in Malaysia on April 18 at a port called 'Pengerang. The third vessel Mihzem carrying Qatari LNG and managed by a?MISC unit crossed the waterway on Tuesday. It is the second vessel to carry this cargo under an agreement involving Iran, Pakistan and Iran. According to sources and shipping data, two other MISC vessels remain in the Gulf. (Reporting and editing by Ros Russell. Editing by Rozanna latiff)
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South Korea's KFA purchases approximately 55,000 tons corn, traders claim
The Korea Feed Association in South Korea bought an estimated 55,000 tons of animal feed corn from South America at an international auction held on Friday, which sought up to 69,000 tonnes. The KFA Busan section purchased it in one shipment for arrival in South Korea on or around August 30, at an estimated cost of $276.42 per ton, including freight (c&f), plus a $1.50 surcharge per ton for port unloading. Trading house?ETG was suspected to be the seller. Further estimates of prices and volume are still possible. If you are sourcing from the U.S. Pacific Northwest Coast, the shipment will be between July 22 and August 10. From the U.S. Gulf region between July 2 to July 21, or South America between June 27 and July 16, or South Africa between July 12, and?July 31, Major Feedmill Group of South Korea also purchased approximately 66,000 tons of animal feed corn at an international tender held on Tuesday. Traders say importers delayed purchases over the past few weeks, 'hoping that a 'U.S. peace agreement with Iran would?push commodity prices down. But some have now resumed purchasing as a deal is still elusive.
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Data from industry sources show that Russian seaborne oil products exports dropped in April due to drone attacks.
Data from industry sources and calculations showed that Russia's seaborne product exports fell by 9.8% from one month to the next and 17% compared to a year earlier, reaching 7.77 million metric tonnes, according to a report released on Friday. This was as Ukrainian drones attacked ports and refineries. Kyiv intensified its attacks to disrupt Moscow's ability of financing the Ukraine War, forcing 700,000 barrels a day of Russian crude processing capacity off-line between January and April. The April export of oil products dropped to its lowest level since November 20,25 when two major Black Sea ports, Tuapse & Novorossiysk, halted fuel deliveries following drone attacks. Late March, drone strikes in the Baltic ports Primorsk & Ust-Luga ignited fuel tanks. Port terminals could not handle oil product shipments as a result. Data from industry sources shows that April exports of oil products from Russia's Baltic port -- Primorsk Vysotsk St. Petersburg Ust-Luga -- dropped by 31.4% compared to the previous month, falling to 3.32 millions tons. The data revealed that fuel loadings via the Black Sea and Azov sea ports increased by a combined?20.3% in March, to reach 3.65 million tonnes, as traders rerouted some fuel flows away from the Baltic ports. The oil product exports from Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, and the Arctic ports increased to 104,300 tonnes in April, from 80,100 tons in April of last year. The data also showed that fuel export?loadings in Russia's Far East port increased last month by 5.6% on a month-on month basis to 698,000 tonnes.
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UAE accelerates oil pipeline project to bypass Hormuz
Abu Dhabi Media Office announced on Friday that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will accelerate the construction of a new pipeline to double their export capacity through Fujairah. This will allow them to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. ADMO reported that during a meeting of the executive committee, Abu Dhabi Crown prince?Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohamed bin Zayed?directed the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company to speed up the West-East Pipeline Project. The pipeline is currently under construction and is expected to begin operating in 2027. The original timeline of the project was not disclosed. The UAE's Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), or the Habshan-Fujairah pipe, is capable of carrying up to 1.8 millions barrels of oil per day. This has proven crucial to the country as it seeks to maximize direct exports along the Gulf of Oman coastline. The UAE and Saudi Arabia have the only Gulf producers that export crude oil outside of the Strait of Hormuz. Oman, on the other hand, has a large coastline along the Gulf of Oman. The 'narrow waterway' between Iran and Oman has been effectively closed by Iran as a response to the U.S. and Israeli air and naval campaigns that began on 28 February. This cut off about a fifth of global oil supplies which normally flow into Asia. Kuwait, Iraq and Bahrain are almost entirely reliant on this strait to ship their goods. The disruption in energy supplies has caused the prices to rise, prompting governments to ration fuel. This has led to fears of an economic slowdown as inflation increases. Reporting by Yousef SABA, Ahmed Elimam, and Jana Choukeir. David Goodman and Mark Potter edited the story.
Slovakia considers options to become direct purchaser of Russian oil
Prime Minister Robert Fico announced on Friday that Slovakia is considering the possibility of becoming a direct purchaser of 'Russian oil.' Currently, purchases are handled by MOL in Hungary, which owns Slovnaft Slovnaft refinery.
Fico suggested that the state pipeline operator Transpetrol could assume a role as buyer.
Fico said in a televised press conference that he thought it was a good idea for the Slovak Republic to become a contracting partner with the Russian Federation.
Both Slovakia and Hungary are exempt from the European Union's restrictions on Russian oil imports.
The bloc has decided to completely phase out Russian products by the end of next year. This is a decision made after?Russia invaded Ukraine 2022.
Slovakia has opposed phaseout of the nuclear power and maintained relations with Russia.
Fico met with Russian President Vladimir Putin this month, and said that Russia would do all it could to meet Slovakia's demand for energy.
Slovakia is a recipient of?Russian crude oil through the Soviet-built Druzhba pipe and also sources alternative supplies via a pipeline built by?Croatia.
MOL had no immediate comment.
(source: Reuters)