Headlines

The International Energy Agency on Thursday agreed to release over 20 million barrels of diesel to the market as soon as possible and any oil remaining from a record emergency reserves release pledged in March to help supply and cool soaring prices. US President Donald Trump has pressed European Union countries to draw down reserves or face a potential US diesel export ban as he seeks to lower prices ahead of November 3 midterm elections. Prices for diesel have surged to record highs in [Read more]

The United States told fellow member nations of the International Energy Agency that current plans to release emergency oil inventories don’t go far enough to quell rising fuel prices, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. While US officials attending an IEA gathering in Paris have yet to table a proposal about what should be done, they have been informally lobbying for an extra commitment of at least 100 million barrels, the report said. Reuters [Read more]

The Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said on Thursday that the country's Houthis had attempted to attack dozens of Saudi airports, ports and oil facilities, as fighting between the Iran-aligned group and Saudi Arabia intensified. The Houthis have been firing ballistic missiles and drones at key Saudi sites for a week, in response to the kingdom's backing of government forces in Yemen's renewed civil war. The coalition's latest statement highlighted the risk to Saudi civilian [Read more]

Iran's army said on Thursday that a "violating" oil tanker is on fire in the eastern part of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a statement carried by state media. "This rogue tanker, having disabled its tracking systems, was attempting to pass through the restricted area in the Gulf of Oman", the army statement added. (Reporting by Elwely Elwelly, Editing by Louise Heavens) [Read more]

The Kremlin said on Thursday that Russian diesel had begun to reach global markets following an agreement with US President Donald Trump. Trump said last week that Russia had agreed to supply diesel to global markets in an effort to lower fuel prices, while Moscow partially lifted its ban on diesel exports from October 10 following the agreement. "The diesel has started reaching global markets and is expected to have a positive effect on stabilising oil markets, although it will not be [Read more]

The Kremlin on Thursday said that Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries ran counter to US peace efforts, after a Ukrainian drone struck a refinery in Russia's Ryazan region overnight. US President Trump declared an energy ceasefire on Sunday, something Ukraine said it had first learnt about from media reports and which Russia did not publicly commit itself to. Kyiv said it had paused strikes on Russian oil refineries for three days, but had resumed them after Russia continued to [Read more]

When the oil supertanker Esteem Explorer sails from the United States to Japan in late November, loaded with about 2 million barrels of crude, the journey will cost $81 million. The same journey would have cost $9.1 million last year, on average. The shipping cost translates into $40.50 per barrel, about nine times last year's rate. While oil's soaring selling price worries consumers, the Esteem Explorer's expensive voyage illustrates how transport costs are further inflating the price. [Read more]