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Two oil tankers linked to Iran exited the Gulf on Monday via the Strait of Hormuz ahead of a planned U.S. blockade on Iranian ports and coastal areas, shipping data from Kpler and LSEG showed.The tanker Auroura is laden with Iranian oil products while the New Future tanker is carrying diesel loaded from the Hamriyah port in the United Arab Emirates, Kpler data showed.(Reuters - Reporting by Florence Tan in Singapore and Jonathan Saul in London; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

China urged calm and restraint by all sides on Monday, following U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz after the failure of weekend talks in Islamabad aimed at ending the Iran war.Before the war, most Iranian oil exports were shipped to China, the top global importer of crude.Keeping the key Strait of Hormuz waterway safe, stable and unimpeded served the interest of the international community, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular press conference…

Oil prices surged on Monday as the U.S. moved to impose a blockade on Iranian shipping after the collapse of weekend peace talks, while the dollar rose and stocks and bonds fell.The U.S. move, aimed at putting pressure on Tehran, leaves a fragile ceasefire hanging in the balance and no end in sight to the choke on Middle East energy exports - though the mood on trading floors leaned toward hoping for a resolution.Brent crude futures LCOc1 were up 7% at $102 a barrel - a gain of more than 40% since the war shut navigation of the Strait of Hormuz.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday that whatever the pressure, Britain would not be dragged into the Iran war nor be involved in a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz."We're not supporting the blockade," he told BBC Radio 5 Live, adding that it was vital to get the Strait reopened."It is, in my view, vital that we get the Strait open and fully open, and that's where we've put all of our efforts in the last few and we'll continue to do so," Starmer said.Britain had minesweepers in the region…

The Iran war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have shattered a status quo that prevailed among Middle East oil and gas producers for decades. Even if the current, shaky ceasefire holds, the uneasy “new normal” has likely set the stage for yet another round of conflict.Tehran has now demonstrated both its ability and willingness to seal off the critical waterway and strike vital infrastructure across the region, fundamentally altering the risk calculus for its neighbours…

Producers in the Middle East have asked Asian refiners to submit crude oil loading programmes for April and May in preparation for the eventual resumption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.A two-week ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran announced on Wednesday lifted hopes for a reopening of the Strait, through which about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies travelled before the war.But there has been no sign yet of Tehran lifting its near-total blockade of the critical waterway…

Shippers on Wednesday said they needed more clarity on the terms of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire before resuming transit through the Strait of Hormuz, as Iran said the waterway remained closed to vessels sailing without a permit.The six‑week conflict had brought traffic through the strait - a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments - close to a standstill, pushing global energy prices sharply higher.Iran said it would offer safe passage in coordination with its armed forces…

Oil prices rose on Thursday as doubts over a fragile two-week Middle East ceasefire raised concerns that energy flows through the crucial Strait of Hormuz will remain restricted.Brent crude futures LCOc1 were up $2.18, or 2.3%, at $96.93 a barrel at 0645 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 rose $3, or 3.18%, to $97.41 a barrel.Both benchmarks fell below $100 per barrel in the previous trading session, with WTI recording its biggest decline since April 2020…

Commodities trader Glencore and Taiwan's state refiner CPC have chartered a tanker each to load Middle Eastern crude for Asia, while vessels in the Gulf are preparing to exit via the Strait of Hormuz, a day after the ceasefire in the U.S.-Iran war.The two-week truce hinges on letting ships pass through the strait, a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments brought to a near standstill by the six-week conflict, sharply driving up global energy prices.Asian refiners rely on the Middle East for more than half their supply of crude and naphtha…

Malaysia-based offshore support vessel (OSV) provider Nam Cheong has secured OSV charter contracts worth up to $25 million, as demand for vessels remains firm in Southeast Asia.The contracts cover one anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessel and one maintenance work vessel, each with a firm charter period of up to two years starting in 2026, with options to extend for an additional year.The AHTS vessel has been chartered to Offshore Oil Engineering and began operations in the first quarter of 2026…

Hapag-Lloyd voiced cautious optimism on Wednesday on the prospect of resuming shipping through the Strait of Hormuz after a two-week ceasefire agreed between the U.S. and Iran, but said that resuming normal traffic throughout its network would take at least 6-8 weeks.Speaking in a call to customers, CEO Rolf Habben Jansen echoed guarded remarks by peer container shipping group Maersk, saying that more security assurances were needed. “Even if a ceasefire has now been agreed overnight…

Maersk said on Wednesday the two-week ceasefire agreed between the U.S.

French President Emmanuel Macron said about 15 countries were planning to facilitate the resumption of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil supply usually flows, after a ceasefire between the United States and Iran was announced."About 15 countries are currently mobilised and are participating in the planning, under France's leadership, to enable the implementation of this strictly defensive mission in coordination with Iran to facilitate the resumption of traffic…

Oil prices dived, stocks surged and the dollar was knocked back on Wednesday as a two-week Middle East ceasefire sparked a relief rally, fuelled by hopes that oil and gas flows through the Strait of Hormuz could resume.The news capped weeks of market volatility and geopolitical upheaval after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran at the end of February pushed tensions to the brink, with Tehran effectively choking off the strategic waterway that typically carries about 20% of the world’s oil and gas.U.S.

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) has rescued a family of three who had been missing for seven days in waters off the Federated States of Micronesia.The crew of the USCGC Midgett located the family on April 6 after authorities reported the vessel overdue following its departure from Fananu Island on March 30.The 23-foot skiff, carrying two men and one woman, had suffered an engine failure during what was intended to be a short journey to Murillo Island, the Coast Guard said.The search area expanded to more than 14…

Kazakhstan's energy ministry said on Tuesday that oil shipments via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium were stable after Russia's military accused Ukraine of damaging loading facilities belonging to the group in the Black Sea.Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that Ukraine had attacked facilities at the maritime transhipment complex in the port of Novorossiysk overnight, damaging a mooring point for the CPC and igniting fires at four oil product reservoirs."The work of our oil sector is stable and CPC exports continue to be stable…

Yamal LNG, controlled by Russia's largest liquefied natural gas producer Novatek, has sent its first cargo to China since last November, LSEG data showed on Tuesday, weeks before the gradual enforcement of Europe's ban on Russian LNG imports.The project, located on the Yamal peninsula in the Arctic, has previously mostly exported its frozen gas to Europe.President Vladimir Putin said last month his country could divert gas away from Europe, given the European Union's decision…

Global stocks wavered on Tuesday, while oil prices were perched above $110 per barrel as the prospect of escalation in the war in the Middle East and the looming deadline for a deal to be reached kept nervy investors on the sidelines.Markets have been rattled since the U.S.-Israel war on Iran broke out at the end of February, with Tehran effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit chokepoint that has spurred inflation worries.While investors have pinned their hopes on a resolution to the war, the talks so far have yielded no progress, with U.S.

The current oil and gas crisis triggered by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is "more serious than the ones in 1973, 1979 and 2022 together", Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), told Le Figaro newspaper."The world has never experienced a disruption to energy supply of such magnitude," he said in an interview with the French newspaper released in its Tuesday edition.He said the European countries, as well Japan, Australia and others will suffer, but the countries most at risk were developing nations which will suffer from higher oil and gas prices…

Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group (Nikkiso CE&IG) has entered into a strategic service partnership with Exion Asia to establish its first marine hub in Southeast Asia, aimed at supporting growing demand for cryogenic equipment services.Under the agreement, Singapore will serve as Nikkiso’s Southeast Asia Marine Hub, providing regional support for cryogenic pumps and related equipment used on marine vessels.The partnership leverages Exion Asia’s network of 17 workshops across Southeast Asia…

Two vessels loaded with liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Ras Laffan, Qatar, turned back after they moved eastward towards the Strait of Hormuz, ship-tracking data showed on Monday.Had the vessels successfully crossed the strait, it would have been the first transit of LNG cargoes through the waterway since the U.S.-Israel war with Iran began on February 28.Data from analytics firms Kpler and LSEG showed the vessels, Al Daayen and Rasheeda, loaded their cargoes in late February.

Indian refiners have purchased Iranian oil amid the Middle East conflict that has disrupted supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, the oil ministry said on Saturday.The world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer, India has not received a cargo from Tehran since May 2019, following U.S. pressure not to buy Iranian crude, but supply disruptions from the U.S.-Israel war have hit the South Asian nation hard."Amid Middle East supply disruptions, Indian refiners have secured their crude oil requirements…

Oil prices were little changed in choppy trade on Monday, as investors awaited clarity on the status of talks between the U.S. and Iran even as they remained wary about sustained supply losses due to shipping disruptions.Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 76 cents, or 0.7%, to $109.79 a barrel at 0656 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 futures were trading 53 cents, or 0.5% lower, at $111.01 per barrel.The pricing moves in Asia trading on Monday were dwarfed by an 11% surge for WTI and an 8% rise for Brent during the previous trading session on Thursday…