The Aug’25 Brent futures reached $65.23/bbl at 02.00 BST before softening to $64.80/bbl at 11.50 BST (time of writing). The Dollar Index slid to a six-week low of 98.16, marking a 3.3% drop since mid-May amid continued weakness. Venezuela’s oil exports remained largely stable last month, as rising shipments to China offset a drop in US-authorised deliveries. The expiration of US licenses on 27 May and PDVSA’s cancellation of some Chevron cargoes over payment concerns reduced flows to traditional US and European buyers. However, intermediaries increased liftings, redirecting more volumes toward China to maintain overall export levels. China was the largest receiver of Venezuela’s oil last month with some 584 kb/d, above the 521 kb/d of April. The US received some 140 kb/d, slightly more than the 130 kb/d of the previous month. India’s imports of Russian crude oil jumped to a 10-month high of 1.96mb/d in May, supported by steep discounts to global benchmarks. Total crude imports stood at 5.1 mb/d, with Russia supplying over 38% of the total. Iraq followed with 1.2 mb/d, while Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the US were the top five. US President Donald Trump insisted Iran must end all uranium enrichment for any future nuclear deal. “The AUTOPEN should have stopped Iran long ago… WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!” he wrote on social media. Special envoy Steve Witkoff had earlier floated a proposal allowing limited civilian enrichment if Iran shut its underground sites, alongside a regional consortium plan akin to the 2015 talks. However, Iran has rejected any deal requiring a full halt to enrichment. Finally, the front-month Aug/Sep ad 6-month Aug/Feb spreads are at $0.69/bbl and $1.46/bbl, respectively.
