Oil Prices Fall as Iran Examines Export Pipelines Readiness
Crude oil prices reduced across grades in the global commodities market amidst uncertainties, taking off from last moment bearish mood last week. During early trading hours on Monday, oil prices fell amidst expectations that Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) would resume oil exports after nearly two years and that progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks could boost global supply.
Brent crude fell by 0.05%, trading at $73.86 per barrel, while the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) decreased by 0.1%, settling at $72.12 per barrel, compared to its prior session close of $72.20.
The KRG government announced on Sunday that it reached an agreement with Iraq to resume oil exports. Iraqi Deputy Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudhair told the official Iraqi News Agency (INA) that technical teams from the Iraqi state-run oil company North Oil and the KRG representatives are continuing to inspect and assess the readiness of export pipelines for oil re-pumping.
Khudhair said that in the first phase, 185,000 barrels of oil per day are planned for export, with the volume gradually increasing to 400,000 barrels.
The Iraqi Oil Ministry said in a statement that it is in contact with Turkish authorities regarding the resumption of oil exports through Türkiye’s Ceyhan seaport on the Mediterranean coast and is awaiting a response.
Resumed Iraqi oil exports via Ceyhan Port could ease supply concerns and put downward pressure on oil prices, according to experts. Meanwhile, expectations of a peace deal in the fourth year of the Russia-Ukraine war also influence prices.
US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday that the US is ‘very close’ to reaching a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia.
Speaking to CNN, Witkoff said: ‘The war didn’t need to happen. It was provoked. It doesn’t necessarily mean it was provoked by the Russians.” He said that ‘cogent and substantive negotiations’ under the framework of the Istanbul Protocol Agreement in 2022 could be used as a framework for a deal.
‘We came very, very close to signing something, and I think we’ll be using that framework as a guidepost to reach a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia,’ he added.
The ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia remains a key geopolitical issue with ongoing military clashes and diplomatic efforts for resolution. Oil prices sold off heavily on Friday, with Brent settling 2.68% lower on the day and WTI briefly trading below US$70 per barrel on Monday, for the first time this year.
Recent weakness in prices comes amid intensifying noise about where OPEC+ will take supply levels. The group is currently cutting supply by 2.2m b/d, and it’s scheduled to bring this supply back onto the market gradually from April.
However, there are suggestions that OPEC+ is considering a delay. “Any delay would lead to a change in the oil balance, leaving the market relatively tighter than we expected. Any delay would also likely not go down well with President Trump, who’s calling on OPEC+ to increase supply”, ING commodities strategists said in a note. #Oil Prices Fall as Iran Examines Export Pipelines Readiness FG Partners WIPO to Boost SMEs’ Global Competitiveness
