Back in June, the global oil market appeared poised for a resurgence, buoyed by a promising uptick in jet fuel demand. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) projected that passenger numbers would hit a record high this year, sparking hopes of a robust recovery for the beleaguered aviation sector. At …
Read More »Weak Demand in China Weighs on Middle East Oil Price Outlook
hings have taken a bad turn for the Middle East. Asia, by far the largest demand hub for Saudi Arabia, Iraq or the United Arab Emirates, seems to be going through the same stage of weakness that Europe and the United States were in the spring. Not buying enough, depleting …
Read More »Middle East Oil Benefits as China Buys Less African Crude
China has long been building inroads into Africa, while the U.S. backs down from the region, leaving a gaping hole in the West’s influence over the “final frontier”. Now, however, we’re seeing all that soft power and oil-backed loans fizzle out as various think tanks note that China is increasingly …
Read More »Russia Dethrones U.S. as Top EU Natural Gas Supplier
Russia became the biggest supplier of natural gas to Europe last month, for the first time since 2022, replacing the United States at the top spot. “It’s striking to see the market share of Russian gas and [liquefied natural gas] inch higher in Europe after all we have been through, …
Read More »Is China’s Oil Demand Set for a Major Bounce back?
Since the mid-1990s, China’s extraordinary economic expansion almost singlehandedly drove a supercycle in key commodities prices it required to power such growth, including oil and gas. In 2013, it became the world’s largest net importer of total petroleum and other liquid fuels and, as late as 2017, its still high …
Read More »Transition to Renewables Calls for New Approach to Energy Security
The transition away from fossil fuels to renewables requires a new interpretation of the concept of energy security, according to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) published today. Geopolitics of the energy transition: Energy security outlines a multi-dimensional energy security concept for the 21st century. The …
Read More »Europe’s Love Affair with Electric Cars Wanes as Sales Plunge
Europe is “returning to petrol”, according to a new article from Yahoo Finance which highlighted Volkswagen’s EV sales as the canary in the coalmine. Sales of Volkswagen’s electric vehicles have declined by nearly 25% in Europe, with a noticeable shift back to gasoline-powered cars amid waning interest in battery-operated models, …
Read More »Kazakhstan Strengthens China-Russia Trade Links with Railway Expansion
Kazakhstan Railways is bolstering its presence in both China and Russia to cement the Central Asian state’s role as a hub for both Europe- and Russia-bound freight rail traffic originating in East Asia. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, speaking via video link, inaugurated a Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) logistics and innovation center …
Read More »Oil Prices Retreat as OPEC+ Cuts another 684KBPD, Brazil Joins OPEC+
Oil prices began to retreat on Thursday afternoon as it became clear that OPEC+ members were agreeing to voluntary cuts beginning in the new year, and that those cuts would be announced only by each member country instead of by the group as a whole. OPEC+ announced during the full …
Read More »Nigeria Looks to Attract Saudi Investment in Downstream Sector
Nigeria expects to see “significant investment flow immediately” from Saudi Arabia after the top crude producer in the Middle East and Africa’s largest oil producer signed investment and cooperation agreements in the energy sector at a summit in Riyadh last week. Nigeria has been looking to attract foreign investment in …
Read More »