The May Brent futures contract has experienced a correction downwards this morning, opening around $86.50/bbl in the early hours of today before seeing selling pressure push the contract down to $85.75/bbl at the time of writing (10:00 GMT). Russian seaborne crude exports have seen a slump of 730 kbbls/d, down to 2.97 mbbls/d in the week to Mar 17, according to BBG. On the shipping front, global bunker demand has risen by 100 kbbls/d to enable longer sailing distances in order to avoid traversing the Red Sea, with the total distance travelled by ships increasing 3% from before the Houthi attacks began. In other news, Sudan has declared a force majeure on crude exports following a major pipeline rupture in the war zone, allowing the country to skip contractual obligations. This represents a serious concern for South Sudan, whose economy is heavily reliant on revenues from the 150 kbbls/d it exports via its northern neighbour. The front and 6-month Brent futures spreads are at $0.57/bbl and $3.89/bbl respectively.
