Trump-Putin Talks Put Oil Markets on Edge
August 8, 2025
The Trump-Putin meeting has become the main commodity market news of this week, with analysts speculating about the likelihood of a comprehensive deal and the impacts this could have on oil markets. ICE Brent has been gradually sliding closer to $65 per barrel as lower sanction risks on Russia could further erode the market's in-built risk premium, however a potential failure in the talks could spark another price rally above $70.
Saudi Arabia Hikes September Prices. Saudi Aramco (TADAWUL:2222) hiked its formula prices for September-loading cargoes, raising Asia-bound OSPs by 1.20 per barrel for both its light grades and by 0.90 per barrel for its largest export stream Arab Light, in line with changes in the Dubai M1-M3 spread.
US Crude Exports Dip on Tightly Shut Arbitrage. US crude exports fell to 3.1 million b/d last month, a 0.5 million b/d drop compared to June and the lowest monthly rate since October 2021, mostly driven by Asia's weakening appetite for light sweet WTI with China continuing to boycott US crude imports.
Iraq Flaunts Imminent Kurdish Pipeline Restart. Iraq's oil minister Hayan Abdul Ghani announced this week that 80,000 b/d of oil exports through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline (shut since February 2023) are poised to begin this week, even though most of Kurdish production remains offline after drone attacks.
Exxon Launches Fourth Guyanese FPSO. Four months ahead of schedule, the Stabroek consortium led US oil major ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) began production at the One Guyana FPSO, its fourth project in the country that adds 250,000 b/d in capacity and develops the Yellowtail-Redtail fields.
Indian Refiners Go Big on Spot Tenders. India's state-owned oil refiner IOC bought 5 million barrels of crude from Brazil, US and Libya in its second spot tender organized this week, taking the total volume of spot crude bought this week in avoidance of Russian supply shocks to a whopping 22 million barrels.
Israel Signs Giant Gas Deal with Egypt. Israel and Egypt have signed a 25-year natural gas supply deal worth 35 billion that would see gas output from the offshore Leviathan field delivered by pipeline to Egyptian customers, totalling 130 bcm by 2040 at an average assumed price of 7.75 per mmBtu.
Argentina Consolidates Its Oil Assets. Argentina's state-controlled oil firm YPF (NYSE:YPF), already the country's largest producer with oil output soaring to 270,000 b/d lately, has agreed to sell TotalEnergies' (NYSE:TTE) oil-weighted assets in the Vaca Muerta shale basin for 700 million, adding 51,000 net acres.
Mexico Mulls Lifting Fracking Ban. Pemex's new 10-year strategic plan envisages a thorough evaluation of Mexico's potential for hydraulic fracturing, a practice banned by former President Lopez Obrador but now tacitly greenlighted by Claudia Sheinbaum, to stop the collapse in oil production rates.
Chevron Tankers Start Returning to Venezuela. According to Reuters, at least three tankers chartered by US oil major Chevron (NYSE:CVX) are returning to Venezuela as flows to the United States will resume as early as this month with Chevron also reactivating its supply agreement with refining giant Valero. Chinese Rare Earth Exports Slide Back Again. Rare earth exports from China dropped by 23% month-over-month in July, quashing hopes that the temporary truce between Beijing and Washington could keep supplies afloat, with most of the supplied 5,994 metric tonnes sent to Western carmakers.
BP's Giant Brazil Find Might Be Problematic. Bumerangue, the much-lauded discovery in Brazil's offshore presented by BP last week, might go undeveloped as there might be no scalable technologies to deal with 'elevated levels of carbon dioxide' found in the 500m deposit, just as Petrobras' Jupiter field.
Beijing Doubles Down on Steel Exports. China's steel exports rose to an all-time high of 9.84 million metric tonnes in July, according to Chinese customs data, defying protectionist measures recently introduced by top trading partners Vietnam and South Korea, sending more semi-finished steel instead.
World Food Prices Hit 2-Year High. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization warned that global food commodity prices rose to their highest since February 2023, with the FAO index averaging 130.1 points, as soaring vegetable oil and meat prices more than offset falling cereal and sugar prices.
By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.comRead this article on OilPrice.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
24 minutes ago
- The Hill
South Korean President Lee will travel to Washington for Aug. 25 meeting with Trump
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's new President Lee Jae Myung will travel to Washington later this month to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, Lee's office said Tuesday, for talks on trade and defense cooperation in the face of nuclear-armed North Korea and other threats. Their Aug. 25 summit will follow a July trade deal in which Washington agreed to cut its reciprocal tariff on South Korea to 15% from the initially proposed 25% and to apply the same reduced rate to South Korean cars, the country's top export to the United States. South Korea also agreed to purchase $100 billion in U.S. energy and invest $350 billion in the country, and the leaders could use their meeting to discuss expanding cooperation in key industries such as semiconductors, batteries and shipbuilding, Lee's spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said. The meeting also comes amid concerns in Seoul that the Trump administration could shake up the decades-old alliance by demanding higher payments for the U.S. troop presence in South Korea and possibly move to reduce it as Washington shifts more focus on China. Lee and Trump will discuss strengthening the allies' defense posture against growing North Korean threats, and also developing the partnership into a 'future-oriented, comprehensive strategic alliance' to address the changing international security and economic environment, according to Kang, who didn't elaborate on the specific issues to be addressed. Dating back to his first term, Trump has regularly called for South Korea to pay more for the 28,500 American troops stationed on its soil. Recent comments by key Trump administration officials, including Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, have also suggested a desire to restructure the alliance, which some experts say could potentially affect the size and role of U.S. forces in South Korea. Under this approach, South Korea would take a greater role in countering North Korean threats while U.S. forces focus more on China, possibly leaving Seoul to face reduced benefits but increased costs and risks, experts say.
San Francisco Chronicle
24 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
South Korean President Lee will travel to Washington for Aug. 25 meeting with Trump
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's new President Lee Jae Myung will travel to Washington later this month to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, Lee's office said Tuesday, for talks on trade and defense cooperation in the face of nuclear-armed North Korea and other threats. Their Aug. 25 summit will follow a July trade deal in which Washington agreed to cut its reciprocal tariff on South Korea to 15% from the initially proposed 25% and to apply the same reduced rate to South Korean cars, the country's top export to the United States. South Korea also agreed to purchase $100 billion in U.S. energy and invest $350 billion in the country, and the leaders could use their meeting to discuss expanding cooperation in key industries such as semiconductors, batteries and shipbuilding, Lee's spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said. The meeting also comes amid concerns in Seoul that the Trump administration could shake up the decades-old alliance by demanding higher payments for the U.S. troop presence in South Korea and possibly move to reduce it as Washington shifts more focus on China. Lee and Trump will discuss strengthening the allies' defense posture against growing North Korean threats, and also developing the partnership into a 'future-oriented, comprehensive strategic alliance' to address the changing international security and economic environment, according to Kang, who didn't elaborate on the specific issues to be addressed. Dating back to his first term, Trump has regularly called for South Korea to pay more for the 28,500 American troops stationed on its soil. Recent comments by key Trump administration officials, including Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, have also suggested a desire to restructure the alliance, which some experts say could potentially affect the size and role of U.S. forces in South Korea.
Wall Street Journal
25 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
China Creates World's No. 1 Shipbuilder, Driven by Rivalry With U.S.
A $16 billion merger of two state-controlled shipbuilders in China is set for completion this week, creating the world's biggest shipbuilder while the U.S. searches for a path back into the business. American shipbuilders are playing catch-up after decades of maritime-industry decline, though President Trump's ambitious plans to revive American shipbuilding have hit snags recently. In the shorter term, Trump's threat to impose higher fees on ships made in China is giving South Korean and Japanese rivals an opening to win back market share.
