Daily Oil Fundamentals

Happy New Year, All…

05 Jan 2026

Happy New Year, All…

…and a less volatile and more predictable 2026. The second part of this wish (and even the first half, a sceptic would argue) might be bordering on wishful thinking, at least judging by the main events of the past year. Before attempting to foresee what 2026 may have in store for the world, it is undeniably useful, and by now traditional, to look back at how the past year shaped our lives from a social, political, and economic perspective, not least through the lens of oil. This is what we attempt to outline in today’s report.

Daily Oil Fundamentals

Another Friday in a Year-Long List of Being None-the-Wiser

19 Dec 2025

Another Friday in a Year-Long List of Being None-the-Wiser

Numerically, the amount of central bank decisions over the last couple of days might be considered a bout, but by no means have they caused anything like a rout. The only colour came from the Bank of England which cut by 25-basis points and only by a hair’s breadth margin of a 5 to 4 vote. Norway and Sweden along with the ECB left well enough alone and all have made clear on the need for caution in the face of difficulties ahead. Even the Bank of Japan’s increase of a quarter of a point this morning gets more press due to rates not being as high since 1999 than any great shift in the economic outlook.

Daily Oil Fundamentals

Sanctions are Different for Friends and Foes

18 Dec 2025

Sanctions are Different for Friends and Foes

Sometimes it is finger-drummingly infuriating to keep up with the double standards and contradictory decisions or intentions of this present form of American government. This morning, Reuters reports on how the US has allowed a waiver on oil sales out of the Sakhalin-II project.