From The Houston Chronicle Iran expects an oil tanker seized by the U.K. in the Strait of Gibraltar in July will be released soon, the semi-official Fars News agency reported Tuesday, a move that could help to ease concerns about the safety of shipping routes in the Middle East. “Official and unofficial documents have been exchanged to resolve the matter
From Reuters China imported Iranian crude oil in July for the second month since a U.S. sanctions waiver ended, according to research from three data firms, with one estimate showing some oil entered tanks holding the country’s strategic reserves. According to the firms, which track tanker movements, between 4.4 million and 11 million barrels of Iranian crude were discharged into
From CNBC Crude oil prices could sink by as much as $30 a barrel if China decides to buy Iranian crude oil in retaliation to the latest U.S. tariff measures, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. “While we retain our $60 a barrel Brent forecast for next year, we admit that a Chinese decision to reinitiate Iran crude purchases
From Reuters Britain on Monday joined the United States in a maritime security mission in the Gulf to protect merchant vessels travelling through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran seized a British-flagged vessel. British officials stressed that there was no change to London’s policy on Iran but joining the United States is the most significant non-Brexit foreign policy move to
From The Houston Chronicle Venezuela could lose its largest U.S. asset after a court allowed a Canadian gold miner to seize shares of Citgo Petroleum Corp.’s parent to satisfy an arbitration award. A U.S. appeals court ruled on Monday that Crystallex International Corp. may seize U.S.-based stock of Citgo’s parent, which is part of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, to cover
From Reuters OPEC oil output hit an eight-year low in July as a further voluntary cut by top exporter Saudi Arabia deepened losses caused by U.S. sanctions on Iran and outages elsewhere in the group, a Reuters survey found. The 14-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 29.42 million barrels per day (bpd) this month, the survey showed, down
From Reuters Oil prices rose for a fifth day on Wednesday following a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. inventories and after the Federal Reserve cut U.S. interest rates for the first time in more than a decade. The front-month Brent crude LCOc1 futures contract, which expired Wednesday, rose 45 cents to settle at $65.17 a barrel. Brent posted a monthly decline
From Reuters Britain told Iran on Monday that if it wants to “come out of the dark” it must follow international rules and release a British-flagged oil tanker seized by its forces in the Gulf. Iranian commandos seized the Stena Impero near the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important waterway for oil shipments, on July 19. That was two
From Reuters Somewhere on its journey from the waters off Iran, around Africa’s southern tip and into the Mediterranean, the Grace 1 oil tanker lost the flag under which it sailed and ceased to be registered to Panama. Iran later claimed it as its own. The ship carrying 2 million barrels of Iranian crude was seized by British Royal Marines
From CNBC Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has told his cabinet that protecting security around the Persian Gulf is solely the responsibility of countries in the region and that other nations should stay away. The United Kingdom is attempting to form an alliance with other nations to protect ships passing through the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, a channel that
From CNBC Many cynics have long contended that the real reason the U.S. entered a slew of recent wars was only to protect American oil interests. But now it’s beginning to look like oil may be a major reason why the U.S. isn’t getting into a war with Iran. Believing that flies in the face of a common sentiment that
By Tyler Losier, Energy Reporter, Oil & Gas 360 Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announces sanctions for Zhuhai Zhenrong and its chief executive The United States government will be imposing sanctions on Zhuhai Zhenrong Company Limited, a state-run oil company in China, and its chief executive for purchasing crude oil from Iran. On Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced
