The Dec’25 Brent futures contract initially rose to $63.01/bbl at 14:00 BST before dropping to $61.83/bbl at 17:30 BST (time of writing). In the news, Reuters have reported that Russia’s Novorossiisk port has reached maximum export capacity, reaching 800kb/d last month. According to Reuters estimates, this level is the highest rate in at least 5 years. Elsewhere, Ukrainian economy minister Oleksii Sobolev has stated that Ukraine is considering importing American LNG, amidst struggling Russian gas infrastructure. No further details have been made public, though the energy ministry has said last week that it wants to increase Ukrainian gas imports by 30%. In the UK, foreign secretary Yvette Cooper announced sanctions against Russia’s Rosneft and Lukoil. The new sanctions targets Russia’s shadow fleet and bans UK businesses or individuals from engaging in trade with the sanctioned firms. In other news, the EU has extended an invite to Serbia to join its communal gas-buying initiative, as it looks to reduce Serbian dependence on Russian fossil fuels. In Norway, the government’s Labour party has proposed to raise spending from its $2 trillion oil fund in 2026. Finally, at the time of writing, the front-month Dec/Jan’26 and 6-month Dec/Jun’26 spreads are at $0.27/bbl and $0.19/bbl, respectively.
