TotalEnergies is offering millions of barrels of Iraq’s Basrah Medium and Basrah Heavy crudes for prompt delivery to Asia this month and next, traders who had received some of these offers told Bloomberg on Friday. Iraq, one of the Persian Gulf producers most hit by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has been offering crude on the spot market with deep discounts and only on a loading basis, which means buyers need to secure empty tankers to move inbound into the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz. But TotalEnergies, one of the top commodity…
Market Context
Global crude oil markets remain sensitive to a combination of macroeconomic signals, OPEC+ production policy, and geopolitical developments across key producing regions. Brent crude and WTI serve as the primary price benchmarks, with spread movements reflecting regional supply-demand imbalances and refinery demand shifts.
Energy traders and analysts closely monitor inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), which releases weekly petroleum status reports that frequently move markets. Rising inventories typically signal demand weakness or oversupply, while draws support price recovery.
What to Watch
Analysts and traders will be watching upcoming EIA inventory reports, OPEC+ output decisions, and macroeconomic indicators — particularly U.S. Federal Reserve policy signals and China demand data — for directional cues on crude prices in the near term.
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