- Oil is trading higher, around $72.80, after Iran seizes oil tanker in the Middle East
- Goldman Sachs noted that shipping through the Red Sea has fallen 900 MMBbl/d, or 15%, since the start of attacks
- The US Consumer Price Index increased 3.4% YoY in December, the most in three months, leading to concerns that inflation could remain firm
- Iran seizes oil tanker off the coast of Oman (BBG)
- In a further escalation of tensions in the Middle East, Iran has captured an oil tanker transporting crude from the Iraqi port of Basrah to Turkey, in a claimed retaliation to the “theft of oil by the US”
- Last year, the same tanker was seized by the US for violating Iranian sanctions and forced to offload its 1 MMBbl cargo in the US
- This event adds to a series of attacks and escalations along shipping routes in the Middle East, adding a risk premium to crude prices
- Saudi oil price cuts entice European buyers (BBG)
- European imports of crude from Saudi Arabia are set to increase next month following Saudi’s reduction in selling prices
- European refiners had previously complained about high prices of Saudi crude and had reduced buying or requested less oil than they were entitled to
- Alternative grades, such as Norway’s Johan Sverdrup, have become more expensive, making Saudi crude more attractive
