Saudi Arabia has delivered a stark update to OPEC: its crude oil production plunged another 651,000 barrels per day (b/d) in April, hitting just 6.316 million b/d—the lowest level since the 1990 Gulf War. According to a monthly report from OPEC’s secretariat obtained by Bloomberg, the kingdom’s output has now fallen a cumulative 42% since […]
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The Strait of Hormuz crisis, now in its third month, has evolved from a dramatic military flashpoint into a grinding economic and diplomatic stalemate. As of May 12, 2026, President Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s latest counterproposal as “totally unacceptable,” describing the broader ceasefire as on “life support.” The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) continues […]
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This means restoring normal supply-demand equilibrium, rebuilding severely depleted global inventories, repositioning tankers and supply chains, restarting/rebalancing production flows, ending demand rationing/destruction, and removing the geopolitical risk premium that has driven price volatility and tightness. Nasser emphasized that simply reopening shipping routes (like the Strait of Hormuz) is not the same as market normalization, due […]
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In a stark warning that underscores the fragility of the global oil market amid the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, analysts at Morgan Stanley have declared the oil market is in a “race against time.” The investment bank’s commodity team, led by Martijn Rats, cautions that key market buffers — built up before […]
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Hungary’s newly elected government is already testing Brussels’ resolve on energy policy. In a move that could signal growing fractures within the EU, Prime Minister Péter Magyar’s administration has signaled it will continue purchasing Russian energy if it remains the cheapest and most reliable option—directly challenging the bloc’s binding phase-out rules under the REPowerEU framework. […]
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In a sharp rebuke that underscores the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” doctrine, President Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s latest peace proposal as “totally unacceptable,” signaling that backchannel talks remain deadlocked and energy markets could face renewed volatility. The rejection comes amid a fragile ceasefire that has held since early April 2026 but is now strained […]
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As U.S. naval pressure intensifies around Iran’s ports and the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran is accelerating use of its overland rail connection to China as a sanctions-busting “back door.” The route, part of Beijing’s Belt and Road infrastructure push, offers a faster, blockade-resistant alternative for goods — but how much can it really move, especially […]
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In a sharp escalation near the world’s most critical energy chokepoint, Iran and the United States clashed overnight in the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran accusing Washington of targeting an Iranian-flagged oil tanker and then launching missile, drone, and small-boat attacks on three US Navy destroyers. The incident, which both sides described as defensive, comes […]
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If President Trump meets with President Xi next week the Iran War is over. You will NOT want to miss this episode of the Energy News Beat Global Oil and Gas Markets Update with our special guest Doomberg. We were live on LinkedIn and YouTube, and we had some great questions. Doomberg was on point […]
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Oil markets are set for continued wild swings in the coming weeks as investors grapple with uncertainty over a potential U.S.-Iran deal to end the ongoing conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Citigroup’s global head of commodities research, Max Layton, captured the mood perfectly in a May 7 Bloomberg Television interview: “It’s very difficult […]
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