- Oil retreats for a third day to near one-month low amid growing demand concerns
- September ’23 WTI lost $1.19 this morning to trade around $78.45/Bbl
- The eurozone, especially Germany, saw a larger-than-expected decline in business activity
- Japan's factory activity shrank for the third month in August, and Britain's economy may shrink this quarter, risking a recession
- Markets await hints on interest rate outlook as officials from the US Fed, ECB, Bank of England, and Bank of Japan convene in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Thursday
- Also, China's faltering economy and a strong US dollar continue to weigh on crude prices
- On the supply side, Russian seaborne exports hit their lowest since January, with a drop to 2.84 MMBbl/d in August, marking a decrease of about 1.05 MMBbl/d from the mid-May peak
- Iraq and Turkey remain undecided on key oil pipeline resumption (Bloomberg)
- Turkey and Iraq's talks to reopen a key oil pipeline remain inconclusive, impacting nearly 0.5 MMBbl/d of Kurdish crude for global markets
- The pipeline's closure since March stems from a payment dispute where Turkey owes Iraq about $1.5 billion over unauthorized oil transport
- Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein expressed hope for a resolution on halted oil exports, with discussions anticipated during Turkish President Erdogan's forthcoming visit to Baghdad
- Panama Canal's shrinking water levels disrupt global trade (Bloomberg)
- The Panama Canal's dwindling water levels are causing ships to wait nearly four days on average, from just over a day two months ago, and forcing vessels to part-load
- The canal handles over half a billion tons of global trade annually, including Latin American crops, US energy, and manufactured goods
- Lake Gatun's level hit a seven-year low, and with below-average forecasts until October, prompting the Panama Canal Authority to restrict ship bookings and reduce daily container transit
- Furthermore, rates for ships carrying refined fuels and liquefied petroleum gas in the Atlantic have risen as container ships are prioritized for passage