Data showing some US-headquartered oil and gas firms paid less in taxes to the US than to foreign governments could be a focus in an upcoming Congress tax policy debate. ExxonMobil reported paying nearly $1.2bn to the US in 2023, and $5.6bn to the UAE, according to a first-time ‘Form SD' report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In its own report, Chevron says it paid nearly $1.2bn in the US, against $4bn to Australia. Independent Hess paid $190,000 in the US and $50mn to Malaysia. Industry officials say the data do not provide a comprehensive view of obligations, which can vary from country to country depending on the tax code and their operations. The payment disclosures also do not cover payroll taxes or state and local taxes, for example, and do not say if a company had carryover net operating losses or tax credits that reduced its overall tax bill in the US.
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Trump expects elevated oil prices into November
Trump expects elevated oil prices into November
Washington, 9 September (Argus) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that global oil prices are unlikely to stabilize until after the 3 November midterm congressional elections. "Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward", Trump told reporters. "It's going to take a little bit longer than the midterms." Trump, since he started the war against Iran more than six months ago, has routinely predicted that the conflict would wrap up quickly because of the supposed destruction of Iran's military potential. But on Wednesday, Trump laid out a new narrative that dispenses with his earlier claims of an imminent Iranian collapse, arguing that Tehran's strategy is taking the US electoral calendar into play. Iran is "desperate to try and affect the election so that we can get a nice, weak group of people in (Congress), and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon," Trump said. But, he added: "The war will end immediately after the election because they can't hold out any longer." Trump was speaking to reporters before leaving Washington to attend an unusual, mid-term Republican party convention in Dallas, Texas, where party members hope to tout efforts to bring down prices for consumers. When the US joined Israel in attacking Iran on 28 February, Republicans envisioned a geopolitical victory abroad and cheaper fuel prices at home, a combination that would put wind at their backs to hold unified control of Congress. But, less than two months before the elections, polls indicate that Democrats are likely to wrest control of at least one chamber, if not both. The turnaround in political fortunes, in part, reflects voter concerns over rising inflation, not least because of higher fuel prices stemming from the Mideast Gulf supply disruption. US retail gasoline prices averaged $4.16/USG in the week ended on 7 September, up by around 40pc from late February. "We'll get them down, for gasoline, below $2 a gallon," Trump said on Wednesday. Trump, who ran for re-election in 2024 on a platform promising to cut US energy prices by half, downplayed voters' concerns about rising fuel prices. "I think it's very easy to explain to Americans," he said. "All you have to do is say, 'Will you let Iran have a nuclear weapon?' And the answer is 'no.'" The US and Iran are locked in a struggle for control of the strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway for Mideast Gulf oil and LNG exports where commercial traffic remains well below pre-war levels. The US-Iran military confrontation has escalated in recent days, with US forces destroying eight Iranian tankers in the Mideast Gulf and the Gulf of Oman since 5 September. The Pentagon cited attempted Iranian missile attacks on US warships as a justification for destroying Iranian tankers. "You're going to see a lot more" attacks on Iranian tankers, Trump said. Iran has responded with attacks on the US military base in Jordan and claimed that it has targeted multiple vessels in and around the strait of Hormuz. Two tankers were struck by unknown projectiles in separate attacks within the Mideast Gulf, maritime security organization UK Maritime Trade Operations reported on Wednesday. Iran's ability to target US warships and commercial vessels passing through Hormuz counters recent US claims of having decisively eliminated Tehran's military threat and of enabling an increase in oil exports through the critical waterway. Crude futures have settled higher in each of the past six sessions dating back to 31 August, with October Nymex WTI trading near $96/bl on Wednesday morning. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Final 2026 nEZ auction heavily oversubscribed
Final 2026 nEZ auction heavily oversubscribed
Hamburg, 9 September (Argus) — The final auction for German 2026 national emissions certificates (nEZ) today, 9 September drew bids far exceeding available volumes. Market participants are now shifting their focus to the secondary market and the supplementary purchase phase starting in November. A total of 110 participants bid for 496,856,346 nEZ at €65 each. Only 10,682,308 certificates were allocated, leaving the allocation rate virtually unchanged at just over 2pc. Many entities obligated under Germany's Fuel Emissions Trading Act (BEHG) have still been unable to secure enough certificates to meet compliance requirements after the auction. These companies must now either buy nEZ on the secondary market or acquire extra certificates from November at the fixed price of €68/nEZ. Supply on the secondary market remains very limited, according to market participants. Most auction participants with compliance obligations under the BEHG have generally not yet met those obligations. As a result, the main sellers are typically firms that bought nEZ solely for resale at a profit. Offer prices are generally quoted at €66.50-67.50/nEZ. By Johannes Guhlke Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hormuz traffic up to 16 vessels: Windward
Hormuz traffic up to 16 vessels: Windward
New York, 9 September (Argus) — Vessel traffic through the strait of Hormuz rose to 16 transits on Tuesday, largely on the Iranian controlled northern lane, data from maritime security firm Windward shows. Out of 16 vessel transits, ten crossed inbound, six on the Iranian controlled northern lane, and four using the US-assisted southern lane, Windward data shows. Of the six outbound vessels four took the northern lane and two took the southern lane. Vessel traffic was up slightly from 15 transits the day prior but stood around 12pc of pre-war levels. Expanded fighting around the strait at the start of the week is likely to discourage increases in vessel traffic in the near term. The US military on Tuesday carried out strikes that destroyed five Iranian oil tankers in the Mideast Gulf and Gulf of Oman while Iran retaliated with missiles targeting a US base in Jordan. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed it launched ballistic missile attacks against two US Navy destroyers and targeted multiple vessels in and around the strait of Hormuz. The UK Maritime Trade Organization reported two incidents on vessels on Wednesday, one 28 nautical miles (nm) southeast of Al-Faw, Iraq, and one 24 nm off of Port Rashid, UAE. By Charlotte Bawol Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Trump's Canada trade war hits familiar snags
Trump's Canada trade war hits familiar snags
Washington, 9 September (Argus) — President Donald Trump's administration has dropped punitive tariffs on imported Canadian cement, toilet paper and other products after acknowledging negative impacts on US consumers. But Trump's administration doubled down on confrontation with Ottawa, introducing an outright ban on imports of Canadian alcohol and motorcycles. Trump's conflicts with US foreign trade partners have frequently featured revisions to the lists of affected products after complaints from US consumers and industrial groups. Trump's punitive tariffs on Canada and Ottawa's countermeasures do not apply to energy, potash fertilizer or critical minerals. The US on 22 August began collecting new 50pc tariffs on about $28bn of Canadian imports, including cement, plywood and paper. Trump late on Tuesday ordered modifications to the list of affected products, eliminating the 50pc tariff on Canadian cement, rock salt and toilet paper beginning on 15 September. Trump instead ordered a 50pc tariff on a variety of other Canadian imports, including iron and steel columns and some aluminum byproducts, effective from 15 September. The prohibition on imports of Canadian alcoholic beverages and Canada-manufactured motorcycles will go into effect from 29 September. "Canada walked away from a near-final trade deal that offered better treatment than any other trading partner, and instead Canada chose to embark on senseless retaliation," US trade representative Jamieson Greer said. Canada's retaliatory tariffs on US steel and aluminum went into effect on Tuesday. Canadian prime minister Mark Carney has said that trade talks between the two countries collapsed because the US had made unreasonable demands. "They wanted us to become even more reliant on them, not less," he said on Tuesday. Carney said last week he would be ready to resume trade dialogue once the US "starts being serious". The latest trade escalation is taking place as Trump is set to convene an unusual, mid-term Republican party convention in Dallas, Texas, in a bid to shore up his party's fortunes ahead of the 3 November midterm elections. The event, which Republican party officials describe as a "Trump-a-palooza", aims to highlight Trump's economic and geopolitical accomplishments since returning to office last year. "This election comes down to one simple choice: lower costs, lower taxes, secure borders, and common sense," Republican National Committee chairman Joe Gruters said on 5 September. Less than two months before the elections, polls indicate that Democrats are likely to wrest control of at least one chamber, if not both, in part because of voters' concerns over rising inflation. The US inflation rate earlier this summer reached three-year highs, largely because Trump's war with Iran pushed up US retail fuel prices. US retail gasoline prices averaged $4.16/USG in the week ended on 7 September, up by around 40pc from late February, when the US and Isreal launched an attack on Iran. Higher tariffs have also contributed to an increase in US consumer prices. Higher inflation has undermined Trump's rationale for calling on the US Federal Reserve to slash its target interest rate. Trump last week threatened to introduce import bans on key US trade partners, including Canada and the EU, unless the Fed cuts interest rates. The US Supreme Court in February ruled that Trump's 2025 decisions to arbitrarily impose tariffs on any country had been illegal. But that ruling also pointed out that Congress explicitly gave the White House the legal power to impose an outright embargo on trade with any country. Trump since then has frequently touted that newly discovered prerogative, even though he has denounced the Supreme Court's tariff decision. The import ban on select Canadian products would mark the first exercise of that prerogative. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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