The Jun Brent futures contract strengthened over the afternoon, climbing to $86.40/bbl at 14:50 GMT, but retraced to $85.90/bbl at 17:10 GMT. Russia’s government has ordered companies to cut their oil output in Q2’24 to ensure they meet a production target of 9mbbls/day by the end of June in line with Russia’s pledges to OPEC+. The Yemen-based Houthis have warned Saudi Arabia, stating that the kingdom will be targeted if it permits American fighter jets to use its territory or airspace whilst they strike the militant group. In Sudan, the main pipeline carrying oil from South Sudan through the rest of the country for export has been suffering stoppages for a month over concerns linked to the war between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces. In other news, PetroChina’s net profit increased by 8.3% y-o-y in 2023 despite lower oil prices. Finally, the Jun/Jul and Jun/Dec Brent spreads are currently at $0.72/bbl and $4.24/bbl, respectively.
