The Brent futures flat price for the prompt contract has seen a relatively rangebound morning. Nevertheless, it has seen some support, rising from lows of $78.05/bbl at 08:30 GMT to reach highs of $78.68/bbl come 09:55 GMT.
The US Navy have destroyed three Houthi militant boats in the Red Sea region, whilst Iran has sent a warship through the Bal al-Mandeb Strait. A pipeline used for transporting crude oil from the Jannah Hunt oil field in Yemen has also been attacked and significantly damaged.
India’s crude oil imports in December from Russia plummeted to 1.48mbbls/d, the lowest level seen since Jan’23, as a consequence of six undelivered tankers carrying Sokol grade oil, amidst tightening sanctions.
China has issued a quota of 3.59mbbls/d for crude imports in 2024, a very similar value to the quotas given for 2023.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission have announced an action plan to achieve an annual oil and condensates production target of 2.6mbbls/d by 2026, a 1mbbls/d increase from 2023 levels.
Spreads remains in backwardation, with the front and 6-month Brent futures spreads at $0.17/bbl and $1.33/bbl, respectively.
