Ice Brent crude futures remained above $95/bl in early Asian trading as continued disruptions to oil flows through the strait of Hormuz, and persistent US-Iran tensions supported prices.
The Ice front-month November Brent contract was at $95.99/bl at 04:00 GMT, up by 47¢/bl from its settlement on 3 September August when it ended 11¢/bl lower.
The Nymex front-month October crude contract was at $92.04/bl, higher by 74¢/bl from its settlement on 3 September, when it ended 29¢/bl higher.
A total of nine vessels crossed the strait of Hormuz on 2 September, with four inbound and five outbound transits, data from maritime security firm Windward shows.
Of the inbound transits, one tanker used the US-assisted southern lane, while two of the five outbound vessels were on the southern lane. The remaining transits took place on the Iranian-controlled northern lane.
Wednesday's transits were up by five vessels from the day before, but still far below the pre-war average of around 135 vessels daily. Vessel traffic on Wednesday stood at around 6.5pc of traffic levels prior to the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February.
US President Donald Trump continued to claim that large amounts of crude is making it through the strait of Hormuz, posting a graphic titled "Hormuz Oil Volumes are BACK!" on social media on Thursday.
A vessel has docked at the UAE's 5.6mn t/yr Das Island LNG terminal and could suggest that operator UAE's state-owned Adnoc has chartered additional ships after Iran banned five of its vessels from transiting the strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's state-controlled Saudi Aramco has left most of its official selling prices (OSPs) for October-loading term crude exports across regions unchanged, but hiked the prices of heavier grades for Asian customers and all grades for US customers.
North Sea Dated rose back above $100/bl on 3 September for the first time in six weeks, driven by tightening supply, wide refining margins and higher Asian demand for Atlantic basin crude.
Elsewhere, Moscow is considering a cut to the federal budget's baseline Urals price to $50/bl, deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said on 3 September. State revenue from crude sales above the baseline are channelled into Russia's National Wealth Fund (NWF), which is used to cover the budget deficit.
Ice Brent crude futures remained above $95/bl in early Asian trading as continued disruptions to oil flows through the strait of Hormuz, and persistent US-Iran tensions supported prices.
The Ice front-month November Brent contract was at $95.99/bl at 04:00 GMT, up by 47¢/bl from its settlement on 3 September August when it ended 11¢/bl lower.
The Nymex front-month October crude contract was at $92.04/bl, higher by 74¢/bl from its settlement on 3 September, when it ended 29¢/bl higher.
A total of nine vessels crossed the strait of Hormuz on 2 September, with four inbound and five outbound transits, data from maritime security firm Windward shows.
Of the inbound transits, one tanker used the US-assisted southern lane, while two of the five outbound vessels were on the southern lane. The remaining transits took place on the Iranian-controlled northern lane.
Wednesday's transits were up by five vessels from the day before, but still far below the pre-war average of around 135 vessels daily. Vessel traffic on Wednesday stood at around 6.5pc of traffic levels prior to the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February.
US President Donald Trump continued to claim that large amounts of crude is making it through the strait of Hormuz, posting a graphic titled "Hormuz Oil Volumes are BACK!" on social media on Thursday.
A vessel has docked at the UAE's 5.6mn t/yr Das Island LNG terminal and could suggest that operator UAE's state-owned Adnoc has chartered additional ships after Iran banned five of its vessels from transiting the strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's state-controlled Saudi Aramco has left most of its official selling prices (OSPs) for October-loading term crude exports across regions unchanged, but hiked the prices of heavier grades for Asian customers and all grades for US customers.
North Sea Dated rose back above $100/bl on 3 September for the first time in six weeks, driven by tightening supply, wide refining margins and higher Asian demand for Atlantic basin crude.
Elsewhere, Moscow is considering a cut to the federal budget's baseline Urals price to $50/bl, deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said on 3 September. State revenue from crude sales above the baseline are channelled into Russia's National Wealth Fund (NWF), which is used to cover the budget deficit.
By Rhalain Reyes