The Jan’26 Brent Futures contract fell this afternoon to $63.02/bbl at 16:06 GMT, before recovering to $63.30/bbl at 16:59 BST. At 17:30 BST (time of writing) prices had softened to $63.15/bbl. In the news, Lukoil faces US sanctions pressure, forcing quick action as deals risk being blocked before the 21 November deadline. Sanctions have disrupted operations in Iraq, Finland, and Bulgaria, with a planned asset sale to Gunvor blocked. Bidders are circling foreign assets, including KazMunayGas’s interest in Karachaganak and Shell’s bid for deepwater blocks in Ghana and Nigeria. Egypt and Moldova are also involved targets. Reuters analysts warn proceeds ...

The US government shutdown is finally over! Everyone, mind your manners and say welcome back; the journey was not easy. It has been 43 tense days, and the Democrats will be tending to their wounds for the time being. As for oil, things initially seemed to be looking up. The return of a functioning US government injected some optimism into demand, and Brent prices caught a nice lift from the Senate’s funding bill earlier this week, briefly breaking past $65/bbl. But unfortunately for Brent, what goes up must come down, and an OPEC report made sure that the landing hurt. ...

The Jan’26 Brent futures contract slipped this afternoon, from $64.50/bbl at 13:00 GMT to $62.80/bbl at 16:30 GMT (time of writing). In the news, an OPEC report has forecast that global supply in 2026 will match demand, marking a shift from its previous projections of a supply deficit. The report details that the producer group expects global oil demand to rise by 1.3mb/d this year and at a slightly faster rate in 2026. Elsewhere, President Rumen Radev of Bulgaria has vetoed legislation that would enable the government to seize Lukoil’s Burgas refinery and sell it to shield it from US ...

See all the updates across the barrel in this week’s Onyx Commitment of Traders report, as well as six contracts to watch. Click on the relevant button below to access your COT report.

The Jan’26 Brent futures contract rose this afternoon, from $64.45/bbl at 13:00 GMT to $65.28/bbl at 17:00 GMT (time of writing). According to Reuters, Chinese refinery Yanchang Petroleum (capacity 348kb/d) is seeking non-Russian oil in its latest crude tender for December to mid-February delivery. Simultaneously, Sinopec's subsidiary, Luoyang Petrochemical (capacity 200kb/d), has closed its two crude distillation units for maintenance until late November, partly due to Western sanctions. Elsewhere, Russia's crude oil deliveries to Asia via the Northern Sea Route have decreased 4.2% y/y to about 13mb, according to Kommersant daily. The use of the North Sea route is limited ...

The past few sessions were a calamity for North Sea crude bulls, as the physical differential collapsed towards -$0.80/bbl, the lowest level since May 2024. Falling by 80c in a session, Vitol, which previously was the main buyer, flipped short, and the herd promptly followed. The bleeding was only stopped when Total lifted from Vitol. The oil glut bears have been vindicated, and this comes during a very high margin environment, where levels are at their highest in the year-to-date, driven by relentlessly bullish gasoline and gasoil cracks. The Q1 DFL has been heavily offered, and there may have been ...

Volumes in the Dubai complex slipped into a lull this week, with Dubai spreads largely shadowing the weak Dated Brent narrative....

The Jan’26 Brent futures contract eased this afternoon, from $64.10/bbl at 14:00 GMT to $63.42/bbl at 17:00 GMT (time of writing). In the news, Reuters reported that Russia’s Lukoil has declared force majeure at its Iraqi oil field, West Qurna-2 (capacity 480kb/d), with Bulgaria well poised to seize the refinery. According to a senior Iraqi oil industry official, if the reasons for the extenuating circumstances are not resolved within six months, Lukoil will cease production and completely withdraw from the project. In other news, a Reuters report has stated that India’s HPCL refiner is seeking two cargoes of naphtha for ...