CRUDE IN SIGHT

Crude resumes climb early Tue as Israel bombards Tehran - June 17, 2025

  • Crude futures had reclaimed about half of Monday’s modest losses in early Tuesday’s trading, ratcheting up the geopolitical risk premium after US President Donald Trump called for an immediate evacuation of Tehran.
  • However, the upward momentum continued to face resistance, with Brent retreating from the intraday peak of well above $74 hit in the early hours.
  • OPEC on Monday projected 1.29 million b/d of annual global oil demand growth in 2025, virtually unchanged from last month’s forecast.

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OIL VIEWSLETTER

Crude spike may unwind if Trump defuses Israel-Iran tensions - June 13, 2025

In this week’s Oil Viewsletter: 

 

  • A wave of pre-dawn Israeli airstrikes on Iran on Friday jolted crude out of its recent range, with Brent briefly surging above $78 before retreating to $74-75 levels.
  • The market remains on edge over how the crisis will evolve: de-escalation, drawn-out low-intensity conflict, or wider regional war?
  • Iran’s Supreme Leader warned of a “bitter and painful fate” for Israel; Netanyahu vowed to keep the operation going “as many days as it takes.”
  • Washington quickly distanced itself from the Israeli strike, calling it a unilateral move by Israel. In his first comments on the attacks Friday morning US time, Trump urged Iran to seize a final chance for a nuclear deal, reaffirming his commitment to diplomacy. Having cast himself as a peacemaker and failed to deliver on his promises of ending the Ukraine and Gaza wars, the stakes are especially high for Trump and we expect he will move to defuse the situation.
  • Our base case: Brent pulls back into the mid- to high-$60s range as tensions ease and attention returns to US tariff risks.

 

Spotlight: Why crude has not latched on to the “TACO trade” that has buoyed other risk assets over the past month.

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BULLS & BEARS

Mildly bearish near-term and second-half April - April 2, 2025

After weighing the factors supporting and weighing on crude, we concluded:

  • MILDLY BEARISH sentiment for the near-term and
  • MILDLY BEARISH sentiment for second-half April

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EXECUTIVE BRIEFING NOTES

US' tough new Russia oil sanctions may have a short shelf life - Jan. 12, 2025

The Biden administration took oil market players by surprise on Friday by announcing the most expansive sanctions yet against Russia’s oil sector. 

We suspect it was not only the oil market; the US’ European Union allies across the pond may have also been caught unawares – we couldn’t find a single reaction from any of the region’s leaders! The UK, for what it is worth, joined the US, simultaneously announcing sanctions against Gazpromneft and Surgutneftegas, 

It was curious to see Biden fire the bazooka just 10 days before handing over charge to Donald Trump, who is clearly going to have a vastly different approach to resolving the Ukraine war.

What does the upcoming change of guard in the US say for the durability of the latest round of sanctions and crude’s 4% spike on Friday? Our succinct insights in this report.

OIL RADAR

OIL IN 2025: Softer crude prices but not because of oversupply - Dec. 27, 2024

Benchmark Brent crude prices averaged just under $80/barrel in 2024, about 2.7% lower versus last year.

We expect the average to dip into the $70-75/barrel band in 2025, but not because of a sizeable oversupply in the market, let alone a “glut”. 

A sombre economic outlook for 2025, bolstered by China’s uphill battle to jump-start growth and amplified by expectations of a fresh round of trade wars under Trump 2.0, has shaped a bearish narrative around oil demand. 

But we would caution against leaning too much into the gloom-and-doom scenario. 

Crude is more likely to come under pressure from an evaporating geopolitical risk premium and worries over economic stability than any severe economic downturns or recessions.

Oil demand could remain relatively resilient, helped by softer prices, leading to a largely balanced market, especially with OPEC+ remaining extra cautious and conservative in bringing back the barrels it has locked away.

What challenges our baseline views? We also bring you the contrarian perspective and wildcards!