Donna Dong
Research Analyst, Flux
Brent Breaks $119/bbl
US turns net exporter as stocks drop; Trump meets oil firms; Russia flows steady; Italy warns on jet fuel
The Jul’26 Brent futures contract has risen from $107.36/bbl at 13:13 BST to $110.80/bbl at 17:18 BST (time of writing). In the current M1 (Jun'26), Brent briefly broke the $119/bbl level before softening slightly to $118.72/bbl at the time of writing.
In the news, US oil stocks dropped significantly last week as rising global demand amid the Iran conflict made the United States a net crude exporter on a weekly basis for the first time ever, according to the Energy Information Administration. Crude inventories decreased by 6.2mb in the week ending 24 Apr; meanwhile, total US crude exports reached a record 6.44mb/d (+1.64mb/d w/w). Further, net imports dropped into negative territory, making it the lowest on record since 2001. In other news, Donald Trump met with senior representatives from Chevron, including CEO Mike Wirth, and other energy firms to discuss potential measures to stabilise oil markets should the Iranian port blockade persist for several months. According to a White House official, the talks focused on US oil production, oil futures, shipping, and natural gas. In Russia, despite ongoing drone attacks, crude oil loadings at its key western ports in April remained at March levels, with Reuters suggesting that May could see even higher volumes. Although drone attacks on ports and pipeline infrastructure constrained crude shipments from the Baltic and Black Sea ports in late March and early April, they did not cause a total decline in shipments. In April, exports and transit shipments of Urals, Siberian Light, and KEBCO crude from Primorsk, Ust-Luga, and Novorossiysk ports are estimated at approximately 2.2mb/d. In Italy, Transport Minister Matteo Salvini has said that the country’s jet fuel reserves are sufficient to sustain airport operations at least until the end of May; he then urged the EU to relax its budget rules to allow governments to respond to the energy crisis. Finally, at the time of writing, the Jul/Aug and 6-month (Jul/Jan) Brent futures spreads are at $6.94/bbl and $24.90/bbl, respectively.
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