US President Donald Trump's trademark ability to talk down oil markets with a few words is fading as the Iran war drags on, leaving global energy prices far more exposed to escalation. The Republican president's so-called "jawboning" was one of the defining features of the Iran conflict's early months after fighting erupted in late February. In the months before the short-lived July ceasefire, Trump's repeated public statements and social media posts that said Washington and Tehran were [Read more]

BP expects to report $3 billion to $4.5 billion of impairments in its third quarter results, relating to its gas and low-carbon energy segment, the oil major said on Tuesday. This is the second time in a year that the British firm has booked large write-downs in its low-carbon business, previously flagging $4 billion to $5 billion in impairments in January. BP declined on Tuesday to comment further on details of the impairment. The refining indicator margin for the quarter is due to be [Read more]

Japan's cabinet approved three bills on Tuesday to strengthen energy supply security, including measures to offset higher costs of importing crude oil through routes that bypass the Strait of Hormuz, Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa said. The government plans to submit the bills to parliament during the current extraordinary Diet session. * "Through these three bills, we aim to improve supply security by diversifying sources of crude oil and other fossil fuels and reducing related risks," [Read more]

Oil prices climbed on Monday as attacks on Saudi Arabia overshadowed hopes for supply improvements, and expectations for higher US interest rates to fight inflation drove the dollar higher on a narrowly mixed day for global stocks. The action came after US President Donald Trump hailed fresh Russian diesel exports and a Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire. The dollar's rise in recent months has been driven in large part by expectations that high prices for energy and other goods will force the [Read more]

Dense heavy crude, which oil refiners around the world favor for its typically low cost, is piling up in the Americas as soaring freight rates have stifled exports and US refiners have been running close to their limits. The glut in North and South America has opened an unusual split in the global oil market, as buyers in Asia and Europe struggle with supply shortages and benchmark prices hold above $100 a barrel. Heavy crude is a denser type of oil that Asian, many US, and some European [Read more]

Russia will be able to recover its diesel exports to between 3 million tons and 3.5 million tons per month by year-end, the country's usual exporting volumes of the fuel, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday. Speaking to Rossiya-24 state TV channel, he also said that thanks to the deal agreed on with US President Donald Trump, additional Russian diesel supplies will partially balance global supply and demand. (Reporting by Olesya Astakhova and Maxim Rodionov; writing by [Read more]

US President Donald Trump has stepped up his efforts to lower US diesel prices by lifting sanctions on Russian diesel exports and announcing a ceasefire on energy infrastructure between Russia and Ukraine. Soaring US diesel prices are hurting US truckers and farmers, and are a concern for voters and political parties ahead of November 3 midterm elections. US prices were down 0.5% on Monday following Trump's announcements. HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE WILL RUSSIA'S RELEASE MAKE? Trump said on [Read more]

President Donald Trump on Monday defended a diesel oil deal he made with Russia as lawmakers from both parties complained the agreement appears to violate US law barring imports of Russian energy until Moscow ends its aggression against Ukraine. Trump said he is taking steps to bring down high fuel prices, which are jeopardizing Republican chances in the November 3 midterm elections. Prices have shot up since he launched a war against Iran seven months ago but he blames Ukraine's attacks on [Read more]