OIL: Oil End of Day Summary: WTI Falls

WTI has lost ground today after reports that the EC may focus on targeting Russian LNG rather than oil in its latest sanctions package.

• WTI OCT 25 down 0.8% at 63.55$/bbl
• The European Commission is considering including a provision in its new sanctions package that would phase out imports of all Russian LNG earlier than the end of 2027, which was the EU’s initial plan. The commission’s focus is turning to Russian LNG, with many EU countries reluctant to hit India and China with tariffs for purchases of Russian oil.
• The EU’s 19th sanctions package against Russia could come as soon as Friday according to Bloomberg sources.
• Hungary remains opposed to a faster than planned Russian oil phase out, its environment minister Aniko Raisz said on Thursday.
• President Trump and President Xi will hold a call tomorrow at 9am ET. Trump has said he ‘may’ extend a trade truce between the two countries.
• The US Supreme Court will hear arguments over the legality of President Donald Trump's tariffs on Nov. 5, Reuters reported.
• Russia’s weekly seaborne crude shipments fell by 934kb/d in the week to Sep. 14 to 3.18mb/d driven by a drop in Baltic loadings amid drone strike on regional facilities, according to Bloomberg.
• Russia has increased its planned September oil loadings from the Baltic Port of Ust-Luga and the Black Sea’s Novorossiisk Reuters sources said. It comes following disruptions at Primorsk following last month’s Ukrainian drone attack.
• Russian gas producer Novatek supplied about 70k tons of gas condensate to Novorossiisk in September amid the shutdown of its Ust-Luga gas condensate complex, Reuters reports citing two sources.