The August Brent Futures flat price has been fairly flat this morning following a brief drop-off from $85.40/bbl to just below $85/bbl between 07:00 BST and 07:45 BST. Since then, the price has marginally ticked up and sits at $85.20/bbl as of 11:05 BST (time of writing). The Israeli military last night said senior officers had approved “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon”, as fears grow of the prospect of an ‘all-out war’, with the US seeking to de-escalate hostilities. Lukoil shipped 366kb of diesel to Chile’s port of Arica earlier this month, a key example of Russia having significantly boosted fuel supplies to LATAM, Africa and Asia following the introduction of Western sanctions. Russia is considering permitting refiners to continue exporting gasoline beyond June as domestic supplies remain plentiful, with the existing permit for international shipments currently only in place until June 30. Finally, Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji has stated that Iranian oil exports will continue regardless of who is elected as the next US president, with Iran having managed to raise production from 2.1mb/d to 3.5mb/d and triple exports since 2021 under Joe Biden’s presidency. At the time of writing, the front and 6-month spreads are $0.75/bbl and $3.64/bbl, respectively.
