Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday as supply concerns continued to weigh on the market, fueled by reports suggesting that Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline may resume partial operations sooner than a full repair, which could take six to eight weeks to restore the facility to full capacity. Sources cited by The Wall Street Journal noted that the pipeline is currently being tested for “structural integrity” and “pressure.” Namely, Aramco has been forced to reroute deliveries through the Strait of Hormuz, a route the company had sought to avoid by relying on its East-West pipeline, which has a capacity of up to 7 million barrels per day. In addition, geopolitical concerns over the deepening crisis in the Middle East added to pressure on oil prices, after a Saudi airstrike on the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha killed six civilians.
For November contracts, the West Texas Intermediate jumped 2.37% to $91.76 a barrel. Brent rose 2.03% to $101.24 per barrel at 9:45 am ET.
U.S. diesel prices have surged above $6.50 per gallon, as lost Middle Eastern and Russian fuel supplies collide with limited global refining capacity.
Washington is debating a diesel export ban to ease domestic prices, but opponents warn it could worsen the global shortage and potentially trigger similar restrictions elsewhere.
Europe is particularly vulnerable, having closed significant refining capacity while becoming increasingly dependent on imported crude and refined fuels from the Middle East and other regions.
U.S. diesel prices broke another record last week, topping $6.50 per gallon. In Europe, fuel prices are soaring, and shortages are looming over already struggling economies. There is simply not enough refining capacity in the world to make up for the loss of Middle Eastern and Russian barrels. And there is no quick fix. Last week, Russia said it would extend a ban on diesel exports until the end of October, as Ukrainian drone attacks on refineries continued, despite President Donald Trump’s call on the Zelensky government to stop attacking energy infrastructure, blaming the diesel price surge solely on those attacks. The latest attack came on Sunday, targeting one of Russia’s largest refineries. However, the loss of fuel supply from the Middle East is much larger, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, citing figures from the International Energy Agency showing the amount of diesel output lost in the Middle East was three times as high as lost Russian supply. Now, there are calls in Congress for a U.S. ban on diesel exports. The fact is that over the past decade or so, a lot of refineries have been shut down under pressure from the net-zero movement that has come to dominate energy policies, mainly in Europe, but also in the U.S. under Democratic administrations. Refining had become a losing game for many, so they either shut down or converted their capacity to biofuels. While refineries closed in Europe and the United States, however, Middle Eastern petrostates built new ones, coming to account for a bigger portion of global refining capacity. Now, that capacity has been compromised – and some of it has been damaged by Iranian strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure – and there is no one to pick up the slack, with U.S. refiners already operating at rates as high as they can. There is no solution to the world’s fuel problem in sight. Tanker traffic via the Strait of Hormuz remains severely depressed, Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries continue, and if the U.S. bans diesel exports, according to the WSJ, China and India may follow its example, plunging the rest of the world into hitherto unseen levels of fuel shortages. The biggest loser of the situation, it appears, will be Europe, due to its heavy dependence on energy imports in both crude oil and refined products, and its shrinking refining capacity.
NN: IF THE GREEENIE WEENNIES LIBERAL COMMIE FAGOTS DID NOT SHUT DOWN OIL WELLS, PIPLINES,REFINERIES AND NEW PROJECTS. OIL WOUD BE AT $60 A BARREL AND DIESEL FUEL AND GASOLINE WOULD BE UNDER $3.00. AND MIDDLE EASTERN OIL WOULD BE EXCESS SUPPLIES NOT REALLY NEEDED. AND NOT MONEY TO FUND ISLAM TERRORISTS. LOOK THESE GENTIC DEFECTIVE LIBERALS COMMIES ARE AGAINST EVERYTHING. IN PREVIOUS GENERATIONS THEY TRIED TO STOP THE AUTOMOBILE, ELECTRICITY, TRAINS, AVIATION, NUCLEAR ENERGY. THEY HAVE TRIED TO STOP ALL ADVANCEMENTS OF MANKIND. IF THEY HAD THEIR WAY WE WOULD LIVE IN GRASS HUTS FORGING FOR WILD BERRIES AND BUGS TO EAT
US President Donald Trump said his officials had “very good” talks with Iranian envoys in New York, reviving hopes for a diplomatic off-ramp hours after he threatened to “annihilate” the country’s ruling regime. Steve Witkoff, a Trump envoy, and Jared Kushner, the president’s son in law, participated on behalf of the US. Witkoff said the negotiations were conducted through mediators shuttling between each delegation. Iran’s state media said the country was represented by the foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, and that the US had requested the meeting. Iran laid down “firm positions” for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, IRIB News reported, citing an unnamed source. Tehran’s conditions include the US immediately lifting a naval blockade, unfreezing Iranian assets and ending the war “on all fronts,” IRIB said, in an apparent reference to Lebanon and Yemen. Trump said the three-hour session — held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly — was “very productive” and another was being planned for the near future. The talks were the first between Iran and the US since around mid-June, shortly after the signing of a short-lived truce. Oil has pared gains this week on signs of renewed diplomacy between the sides to end the conflict or at least restart a ceasefire. Brent crude is down more than 5% to around $98.50 a barrel. It’s still up 62% this year, while US diesel pump prices are at a record high.
But it’s not clear what, if any, progress was made in New York and the US president has recently predicted the conflict will drag on past the midterms on Nov. 3.
The tone of Trump’s remarks about the US-Iran meeting contrasted with his stance during his speech to the General Assembly earlier on Tuesday. Then, he repeated threats to wipe out the country unless its leaders come to an agreement. Oil Dips on Fresh Iran-US Diplomacy
But it remains around 60% higher this year
“Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before — maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world — or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly?” Trump said. Before arriving in New York, Trump indicated he was open to meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is set to make his General Assembly speech on Wednesday.
Trump’s contradictory remarks demonstrated his penchant for swerving between renewed threats and promises of imminent peace. He is under pressure to end the war as soon as possible given its unpopularity with voters at home.
More ships are getting through the chokepoint, but in much smaller volumes than before the war and only with the help of the US military. Iran insists it now has the right to control which ships can enter the Persian Gulf through the strait, which the US says is unacceptable. This month, the Houthis, an Iran-backed group based in Yemen, have stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia, including on its energy infrastructure. The kingdom also had to shut down its main oil-export pipeline following a drone attack from Iraq, where many pro-Tehran militias are based.
NN: How many times have we been on this Trump roller coaster ride. At the end of the day its ALWAYS the same. No real peace deal and no oil. And prices head right back up again.
United States President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday that Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Special Envoy for Peace Missions Jared Kushner met earlier in the day with mediators regarding an agreement with Iran.”The mediators were here, not at the highest level, but it’s something. We had a lot of good thoughts, and a lot of things are working out very well,” Trump shared at a Shield of the Americas event.
The New York Times reported that the Trump administration had prepared to launch airstrikes on Sunday against the Houthis after fresh pleas from the Saudi crown prince. But the newspaper said Trump called off the airstrikes at the last minute, even as troops were loading bombs onto aircraft. Rashid al-Alimi, the Riyadh-based president of Yemen’s Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government, asked Trump by phone on Sunday for US military help. Riyadh was apparently struck on Saturday for the first time since the escalation began, with explosions heard and smoke visible near the airport. The Houthis said they had fired missiles at the Saudi capital; the Saudis have not commented., The Houthis, who have controlled Yemen’s capital since 2014, seized the country’s Red Sea coast this month in an advance that routed forces of the Saudi-backed government.
Saudi Arabia has launched hundreds of strikes in recent days on the fighters’ positions in the highlands, the Houthis say. According to the United Nations, nearly 700 people have been killed and thousands injured in the fighting. Nearly 130,000 Yemenis have fled homes within Yemen, and more than 3,000 have fled by boat across the Red Sea to Africa. Five Yemeni military sources reported the Houthis were now seeking to seize strategic heights, known as the Kahboub Mountains, in two provinces, Taiz and Lahij, which separate the Red Sea coast from the government-held south. Fighting has centred on the outskirts of the remote mountain Al-Wazi’iyah district in Taiz province, and Ras al-Ara along the Indian Ocean coast between the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the Red Sea’s mouth and the government’s base in Aden, the sources said.
“The government forces appear to remain largely in a defensive posture following the loss of the Bab el-Mandeb area, while the Houthis are seeking to maintain the momentum of their advance, despite being exposed to intensive air strikes,” said Mohammed Al-Qadhi, a veteran Yemeni journalist now working as a political analyst.
“These mountains could become critical to determining whether the Houthis succeed in consolidating their recent territorial gains or whether government forces will be able to retain the positions necessary to mount a counteroffensive.” Diplomacy in the wider conflict has largely been stalled since a June interim ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran collapsed within weeks. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian is due to fly on Tuesday to New York to attend the UN General Assembly.
NN: Bottom line. The legitimate government of Yemen is toast. The Houthis will take over and establish another terrorist hell hole. I guarantee when Iran got the call they said YES. Trump on the other hand gave Iran a big win. As bombs were being loaded trump tacoed out again!
Oil futures rose more than 1% on Tuesday as concerns over escalating tensions between the US and Iran added to geopolitical risk premiums. Yesterday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that all Iranian airlines will be “shut down” starting Wednesday, with the measures including a ban on airports, fuel suppliers, ticketing agencies, and other service providers offering them services. Investors are nevertheless watching for signs of a diplomatic solution to the conflict as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is expected to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October’s deliveries increased by 1.14% at 1:56 am ET to $96.87 per barrel. Brent for November’s shipments jumped by 1.31% to $101.65 per barrel
NN: Excuse me i want to ask a question. How many barrels of oil do these sanctions add to the dwindling oil supply?
Oil futures rose more than 1% on Tuesday as concerns over escalating tensions between the US and Iran added to geopolitical risk premiums.
Yesterday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that all Iranian airlines will be “shut down” starting Wednesday, with the measures including a ban on airports, fuel suppliers, ticketing agencies, and other service providers offering them services. Investors are nevertheless watching for signs of a diplomatic solution to the conflict as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is expected to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October’s deliveries increased by 1.14% at 1:56 am ET to $96.87 per barrel. Brent for November’s shipments jumped by 1.31% to $101.65 per barrel
NN: Excuse me i want to ask a question. How many barrels of oil do these sanctions add to the dwindling oil supply?
Oil futures rose more than 1% on Tuesday as concerns over escalating tensions between the US and Iran added to geopolitical risk premiums. Yesterday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that all Iranian airlines will be “shut down” starting Wednesday, with the measures including a ban on airports, fuel suppliers, ticketing agencies, and other service providers offering them services. Investors are nevertheless watching for signs of a diplomatic solution to the conflict as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is expected to travel to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October’s deliveries increased by 1.14% at 1:56 am ET to $96.87 per barrel. Brent for November’s shipments jumped by 1.31% to $101.65 per barrel
NN: Excuse me i want to ask a question. How many barrels of oil do these sanctions add to the dwindling oil supply?
The Moscow Oil Refinery was hit during drone attacks that were part of the largest Ukrainian barrage this year.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it downed 1,110 Ukrainian drones across 19 regions of Russia as well as in Crimea.
The refinery strike damaged a facility at the site, with the Ukrainian General Staff saying the AVT-6 primary crude oil distillation unit and other units were hit, and large fires were recorded at the facility.
The Moscow Oil Refinery was hit during drone attacks that were part of the largest overnight Ukrainian barrage this year, as Russia entered the final day of voting in its parliamentary elections. Russia’s Defense Ministry said it downed 1,110 Ukrainian drones across 19 regions of Russia as well as in Crimea, which the Kremlin annexed in 2014. That’s the largest overnight total reported so far this year, eclipsing the previous high of 822 in August. The ministry said its air defenses brought down eight Ukrainian Flamingo missiles and 1,951 drones over the past day, the Interfax news service reported. Several drones struck the territory of the Moscow refinery, damaging a facility at the site, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said, without elaborating. Nobody was hurt and emergency services were working at the scene, he said in a post on Telegram. Oil producer Gazprom Neft PJSC owns the refinery, located about 25 kilometers (16 miles) from the Kremlin. It has a processing capacity of about 245,000 barrels a day and is one of the key fuel suppliers for the capital region.
The refinery’s AVT-6 primary crude oil distillation unit, the integrated crude oil processing unit and the isomerization unit were hit during the attack, and large fires were recorded at the facility, the Ukrainian General Staff said in a post on Facebook. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a Pelican ballistic missile was involved in the attacks, the first publicly confirmed combat use of the system. Its manufacturer Fire Point puts the missile’s range at only 200 kilometers on its website, though, and it was unclear from Zelenskyy’s post what part it played and where.The strikes on the Moscow area, including on the refinery and a logistics center, had “very significant impact,” Zelenskyy said on X. The attacks took place as Russia holds the third and final day of voting in its first parliamentary elections since President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Sobyanin said 152 drones targeted Moscow overnight in what he called an “unprecedented” assault involving more than 1,600 unmanned aerial vehicles over the past day aimed at the capital. Most were downed by air defenses, he said. The attack “was clearly planned with the aim of disrupting the elections,” Sobyanin said. Turnout had reached 47.95% shortly before noon in Moscow on Sunday, state-run Tass news service reported, citing Russia’s central election commission
. The refinery strike was the latest indication that neither Ukraine nor Russia has signed up to an energy truce that US President Donald Trump claimed on Sept. 14 had been agreed with the warring sides as global diesel prices surge.
The Moscow refinery was previously damaged in June during a record drone attack on the capital, sending plumes of black smoke across the region and contributing to fuel shortages in Russia. While Moscow is protected by some of Russia’s most advanced air-defense systems, recent large-scale drone attacks have exposed the limits of even layered defenses. Most are intercepted, though some still manage to strike targets. Ukraine’s Air Forces said Russia carried out attacks overnight with 138 drones, half of them jet-powered. Air defenses destroyed 101 drones, it said Sunday in a Telegram post. The Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram that it struck a warehouse outside Kyiv storing components for drones made by Fire Point, as well as a Nova Poshta logistics center near the Black Sea port of Odesa, and a cargo ship used to deliver military goods.
NN: I guess Ukraine did not get the Trump memo about not attacking oil infrastructure
United States President Donald Trump decided not to go ahead with the plan to launch large-scale strikes against Yemeni Houthis for now, after being cautioned by allies that it would risk opening another front in the Middle East, the New York Times reported. According to the report, Trump (TACO) vacillated between ordering the strikes and avoiding confrontation for the past few weeks, as Houthis made rapid advances against Saudi-backed forces, gained full control over the Bab el-Mandeb strait, and launched missile strikes on the kingdom’s oil infrastructure. Moreover, Trump is alleged to have received a direct phone call from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Thursday, asking him to intervene in the conflict. However, the US leader had told his aides the day before that he did not favor strikes, but then changed his mind and instructed the Pentagon to prepare for military action. Another turn of events came on Sunday when Trump reversed his decision and called off the airstrikes at the last moment.
Crude oil prices fell on Monday as traders monitored the potential recovery of Saudi oil shipments following missile and drone attacks by Iran-backed Houthi forces on Saturday. JPMorgan analysts said in a September 18 note that Middle East oil flows remained “surprisingly strong” despite disruption to Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline, while US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper said oil and liquefied natural gas shipments through the Strait of Hormuz over the past two weeks had reached their highest level in six months, seemingly shaking supply fears off. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October’s settlements slumped by 2.05% at 12:55 am ET to $98.24 per barrel. Simultaneously, Brent for November’s deliveries decreased by 2.04% to $101.75 per barrel.
The Iranian Armed Forces’ Central Command stated that it received information about the United States planning to resume its “actions” against Iran, and warned that Tehran will retaliate, Iran’s state media outlet IRIB News reported on Sunday. “We warn that if the US commits any act of aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran, all of its bases and interests in the region will be subjected to sustained, effective and painful attacks, without any restrictions or consideration,” the Iranian military said, claiming that the US received a “green light” for its plans from the countries in the region at a joint meeting in a European country. The military’s Central Command also warned regional countries that if they “continue their dual policy” towards Iran, they will be considered “complicit” and should not expect “restraint or decency” from Iran’s Armed Forces.
US strategic bombers said to have taken off from UK
US strategic B-1 bombers have taken off from their bases in the United Kingdom after midnight on Sunday, local time, as tensions in the Middle East rose again amid the Saudi Arabia-Houthi conflict and the standoff with Iran. According to footage that surfaced online, the bombers were spotted departing the runway at RAF Fairford in southern England, but their destination remained unknown. Earlier, the US State Department issued alerts for multiple countries across the Middle East, warning of a potential escalation of hostilities involving Houthis and Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump appeared to cut short his stay at Camp David and headed back to Washington DC.
NN: Something is up. See Trade Reco calm Before the storm