2025-10-23 06:58
Oct 23 (Reuters) - UBS said on Thursday that fresh U.S. and EU sanctions targeting Russian energy firms could introduce short-term volatility to crude prices but are unlikely to spark a sustained rally due to oversupply in the global oil market. The bank forecasts Brent crude prices to remain in the $60-$70 per barrel range, adding that previous sanctions had little effect on Russian export volumes, as oil continued to move via alternative channels. Sign up here. "We recommend that investors monitor enforcement and potential supply responses from other producers," UBS said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ubs-sees-short-term-volatility-oil-market-after-new-us-sanctions-oversupply-2025-10-23/
2025-10-23 06:54
BRUSSELS, Oct 23 (Reuters) - EU countries on Thursday formally adopted a 19th package of sanctions against Russia for its war against Ukraine that includes a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas imports. The 27 member states had already approved the package on Wednesday evening after Slovakia dropped its block. Sign up here. "It's a significant package that targets main Russian revenue streams through new energy, financial, and trade measures," the Danish rotating presidency of the EU said. The LNG ban will take effect in two stages: short-term contracts will end after six months and long-term contracts from January 1, 2027. The full ban comes a year earlier than the Commission's roadmap to end the bloc's reliance on Russian fossil fuels. Measures in the package also include a new mechanism to limit the movement of Russian diplomats within the EU, the statement said. "It targets Russian banks, crypto exchanges, entities in India and China, among others," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a post on X. "The EU is curbing Russian diplomats' movements to counter the attempts of destabilisation. It is increasingly harder for Putin to fund this war." Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the ban on LNG imports is an important step towards a complete phasing out of Russian energy in the EU. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe-adopts-19th-sanctions-package-against-russia-including-lng-import-ban-2025-10-23/
2025-10-23 06:47
US mulls new controls on tech exports to China US inflation data due on Friday Silver up more than 1.5% Oct 23 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Thursday, as U.S. sanctions against Russia and possible new export controls on China added to geopolitical risks, buoying demand for safe-haven assets. Spot gold was up 0.5% at $4,114.06 per ounce, as of 1121 GMT. Bullion fell to a near two-week low in the previous session. Sign up here. U.S. gold futures for December delivery climbed 1.6% to $4,128.40/oz. "Gold is attempting to find its footing following the healthy and sorely-needed technical pullback (and while) stubborn geopolitical risks should preserve safe-haven bids ... it has been less inclined to produce wild swings in reacting to such (news)," said Han Tan, chief market analyst at Nemo.money. Donald Trump's administration is considering a plan to curb an array of software-powered exports to China, from laptops to jet engines, to retaliate against Beijing's latest round of rare earth export restrictions. Meanwhile, U.S. President Trump imposed Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia for the first time in his second term, targeting oil companies Lukoil and Rosneft. Gold prices have gained about 57% this year, reaching an all-time peak of $4,381.21 on Monday, bolstered by geopolitical and economic uncertainties, rate-cut bets and sustained central bank buying. Focus shifts to the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report due on Friday, delayed due to the government shutdown, which is expected to shed more light on the Federal Reserve's interest rate cut path. A 25-basis-point rate cut at next week's Fed's meeting has been almost fully priced in by investors. FEDWATCH Non-yielding bullion tends to do well in low interest rate environments. "We continue to view gold as an effective portfolio diversifier, with further gains toward our upside case of $4,700/oz still possible should adverse macro and political developments emerge," Mark Haefele, Chief Investment Officer at UBS, said in a note. Elsewhere, spot silver rose 1.3% to $49.14 per ounce, platinum gained 1.3% to $1,643.25 and palladium held steady at $1,456.98. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/gold-inches-down-dollar-firms-focus-us-inflation-data-2025-10-23/
2025-10-23 06:39
MUMBAI, Oct 23 (Reuters) - The rupee struggled for direction on Thursday, stuck in a narrow range before ending marginally higher, as inflows into local shares and dollar-selling by state-run banks offset importer demand for the U.S. currency for hedging. The rupee had opened higher at 87.8325 per U.S. dollar, buoyed by a media report that Washington may cut tariffs on Indian imports to 15%–16% from 50%. Sign up here. However, the advance was soon reversed, with the currency dropping to 87.96 intraday, before recovering again to end at higher at 87.84. It had settled at 87.9275 on Monday. Indian foreign-exchange and money markets were shut Tuesday and Wednesday for Diwali holidays. "Now we all know, 88 is the key level that needs to be protected, and whenever the central bank feels the level is close to be breached, they will make their presence felt," trader with a state-run bank said. The Reserve Bank of India has been seen selling dollars through state-run banks whenever the rupee has weakened toward 88, a move traders say is likely aimed at extending the impact of its heavy intervention last Wednesday. "We do not rule out further dollar-selling intervention in the days ahead, but unless the currency undergoes a renewed sharp move back towards 89-90 to the USD, we would expect such intervention to be more limited, going forward," Mitul Kotecha, head of FX & EM macro strategy Asia at Barclays Bank, said in a note. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that U.S. President Donald Trump is considering curbs on software-enabled exports to China — ranging from laptops to jet engines — in response to Beijing’s restrictions on rare earth shipments, which undermining demand for Asian currencies. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/rupee-set-open-higher-after-diwali-break-focus-us-india-trade-deal-news-flow-2025-10-23/
2025-10-23 06:27
US slaps sanctions on Rosneft, Lukoil over Ukraine war Chinese state oil majors suspend Russian oil purchases, sources say Indian refiners reviewing their Russian oil purchases Sanctions could reduce global oil supply, Russia is second-biggest producer OPEC ready to offset shortages NEW YORK, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Oil prices surged around 5% to a two-week high on Thursday after the U.S. imposed sanctions on major Russian suppliers Rosneft (ROSN.MM) , opens new tab and Lukoil (LKOH.MM) , opens new tab over Moscow's war in Ukraine, prompting energy firms in China and India to consider cutting Russian imports. Brent futures rose $3.40, or 5.4%, to settle at $65.99 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $3.29, or 5.6%, to settle at $61.79. Sign up here. Those were the biggest daily percentage gains for both crude contracts since mid-June and their highest closes since October 8. "The announcement of sanctions by the U.S. on Rosneft and Lukoil is a major escalation in the targeting of Russia’s energy sector and could be a big enough shock to flip the global oil market into a deficit next year," said David Oxley, chief climate and commodities economist at Capital Economics. Russia was the world's second-biggest crude oil producer in 2024 after the U.S., according to U.S. energy data. In addition to soaring crude prices, U.S. diesel futures jumped almost 7%, boosting the diesel crack spread to its highest since February 2024. Crack spreads measure refining profit margins. The U.S. sanctions mean refineries in China and India, major buyers of Russian oil, will need to seek alternative suppliers to avoid exclusion from the Western banking system, said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen. Multiple trade sources told Reuters that Chinese state oil majors have suspended purchases of seaborne Russian oil from the two companies now under U.S. sanctions, providing a further boost to prices. Kuwait's oil minister said that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) would be ready to offset any shortage in the market by rolling back output cuts. Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, said it will take time for the global market to replace Russian oil. "This is, of course, an attempt to put pressure on Russia," Putin added. "But no self-respecting country and no self-respecting people ever decides anything under pressure. The U.S. said it was prepared to take further action as it called on Moscow to agree immediately to a ceasefire in Ukraine. "The various U.S. and EU sanctions thus far have had essentially no effect on Russia’s ability to export oil, so we doubt that this latest round will be game-changing. That said, the Kremlin may need to use more intricate methods to ship its oil covertly, thereby increasing costs," said Pavel Molchanov, investment strategy analyst at Raymond James. Molchanov noted the U.S. investment bank would "continue keeping an eye on this issue" since Russian exports account for about 7% of global oil supply. MORE SANCTIONS Britain sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil last week and the European Union has approved a 19th package of sanctions against Russia that includes a ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas. The EU also added two Chinese refiners with combined capacity of 600,000 barrels per day (bpd), as well as Chinaoil Hong Kong, a trading arm of PetroChina (601857.SS) , opens new tab, to its Russia sanctions list, its Official Journal showed on Thursday. The impact of sanctions on oil markets will depend on how India reacts and whether Russia finds alternative buyers, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. Refiners in India, which became the largest buyer of discounted seaborne Russian crude in the aftermath of the war in Ukraine, were poised to sharply curtail imports of Russian oil to comply with new U.S. sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, industry sources said on Thursday, potentially removing a major hurdle to a trade deal with the U.S. Privately owned Reliance Industries, the top Indian buyer of Russian crude, plans to reduce or halt such imports completely, according to two sources familiar with the matter. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-crude-futures-up-13-after-us-sanctions-russias-rosneft-lukoil-says-more-come-2025-10-22/
2025-10-23 06:15
Majors, gulf exporters cancelling deals Yulong may pivot more to Russian oil Yulong buys 150,000-250,000 bpd of Russian oil, traders, analyst say SINGAPORE, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Several suppliers have cancelled sales of Middle Eastern and Canadian oil to China's Yulong Petrochemical after the UK imposed sanctions on the refiner, which is likely to push it to buy more Russian crude, multiple sources familiar with the deals said. The refiner, China's newest with a capacity of 400,000 barrels per day and one of the country's largest single Russian oil customers, is among the entities Britain designated last week to curb Moscow's oil revenues used to fund the Ukraine war. Sign up here. Suppliers that are unwinding supply deals include European majors TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab and BP (BP.L) , opens new tab as well as Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) , opens new tab and Kuwait Petroleum Corp and Chinese state trader PetroChina International, the sources said. Most of the cancellations apply to spot cargoes that were due to load after November 13, when the sanctions take effect. They include two shipments of 2 million barrels of crude each from Kuwait Petroleum and Aramco, according to three of the sources, with specific knowledge of these deals. PetroChina International and TotalEnergies each exited transactions supplying Access Western Blend, a heavy crude exported from Canada, said two other sources, who have knowledge of those transactions. BP and Aramco declined to comment. KPC, Total, PetroChina and Yulong did not respond to requests for comment. It was unclear if Swiss trader Trafigura will suspend its deals with Yulong, said sources with knowledge of the company's transactions with Yulong. Trafigura supplies Yulong with 2 million barrels a month of Omani and Abu Dhabi Upper Zakum crude under an annual contract, the sources said. "Trafigura complies with applicable sanctions and laws including the G7 Price Cap Framework," a Trafigura spokesperson said in response to a query on the supply contract. PIVOT TO RUSSIAN OIL The decision to cancel the contracts partly stems from concerns about the ability to make payments as large western banks will avoid working with sanctioned entities, the sources said. With dwindling access to non-sanctioned crude supplies, Yulong will most likely buy more Russian oil, which already accounts for about half of its intake. "We are already hearing Yulong is moving towards running predominantly sanctioned barrels, which, similar to the sanctions impact on Nayara, may necessitate run cuts," said Sun Jianan, an analyst with consultancy Energy Aspects. India's Nayara Energy, partially owned by Russian major Rosneft, has reduced its refinery runs after European Union sanctions were imposed in July. The company is importing oil exclusively from Russia after Aramco and Iraq's SOMO halted sales. While larger companies step away from Yulong, smaller companies without UK connections could continue dealings, said an executive whose company continues supplying Yulong and declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter. Yulong buys 150,000 to 250,000 barrels per day of Russian crude, according to estimates by traders and tanker tracker Vortexa. Most of Yulong's Russian imports are ESPO Blend from the country's Pacific coast that Chinese refineries favour because of the short transit period for the shipments. Recently, Yulong has also imported Urals crude from Russia's European ports, said three traders familiar with Yulong's procurement patterns. It secures most of its Russian supply from dealers linked to major Russian producers, said two of those sources. Built on a man-made island near the port of Yantai in the northeastern province of Shandong, Yulong Petrochemical is a joint venture between private aluminium firm Nanshan Group and government-backed Shandong Energy Group. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/sellers-cancel-deals-with-chinese-oil-refiner-yulong-after-uk-sanctions-sources-2025-10-23/
