Panama strips flags from Iranian fleet

Spanish Market: Crude oil
03/04/19

Panama's president Juan Carlos Varela issued a decree that strips his country's flag from Iranian vessels, according to the US State Department.

The decree followed Washington's "exposure of an oil-for-terror network", according to an Iran 'Fact Sheet' issued by the department.

Panamanian authorities could not be reached for comment.

Panama's decision "to pull registration and de-flag Iranian vessels" comes after the state-owned National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) fleet started reverting back to using their own national flag..

It is likely the entire NITC fleet is now once again using the Iranian flag, although some ambiguity remains because of increasingly patchy transponder data.

Flying the widely used Panamanian flag of convenience helped the Iranian tanker fleet to secure western insurance coverage and — for a time at least — to access European ports. When flying the Panamanian flag, NITC ships were subject to Panama's maritime laws, regulations, taxation and certification, as well as potential enforcement.

"Countries like Singapore, Sri Lanka and Sierra Leone have exercised great diligence to disrupt these schemes and deny criminal Iranian entities access to flag registries, insurance, and classification," according to US State Department special Iran envoy Brian Hook. This has further reduced Iran's potential options for alternative countries in which to register their ships.

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18/09/26

Germany, Spain, Portugal urge EU windfall tax options

Brussels, 18 September (Argus) — The European Commission should present clear options for an excess profits tax on oil companies, German finance minister Lars Klingbeil said today, gaining support from some EU counterparts. France, however, cautioned against a one-size-fits-all approach. Klingbeil and his peers from Austria, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Italy called on the commission to outline possible windfall tax models ahead of a 9 October meeting of EU finance ministers in Luxembourg. "My clear expectation from the commission is to present models for an excess profit tax now," Klingbeil said at an informal ministerial meeting in Dublin. "There are also instruments we can use to steer the market. That includes a fuel price cap, but also the excess profit tax." French finance minister Roland Lescure said he was not opposed to a windfall tax but said national circumstances differ. "I'm willing to see what the commission is going to come up with," he said. "We also want to make sure that we don't put one-size-fits-all measures in place when national situations are different." European economy commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said the commission is not preparing an EU-wide proposal, and member states remain free to pursue national windfall tax measures. "There is a possibility, certainly for member states to proceed with this windfall profit taxation," Dombrovskis said, adding any measures should be temporary and targeted and should not increase fossil fuel demand. "When we are facing a supply shock, driving up demand will not help," he said. Klingbeil said Berlin is discussing reductions in fuel-related taxes, as flagged by German chancellor Friedrich Merz. "I want a clear, rapid signal at the gas pumps," Klingbeil said. "We are doing this as the federal government, but Europe must also contribute now to getting fuel prices down." Spanish economy minister Carlos Cuerpo also urged the commission to analyse energy-sector profits. "And if there are windfall profits, then we should go and tax them," Cuerpo said, arguing for a European approach so the costs are shared fairly. Portuguese economy minister Joaquim Jose Miranda said the commission has generally favoured national responses over a European solution. He said Portugal's automatic fuel tax reduction, introduced after the outbreak of war between Iran and the US, will remain in place for a "certain period". Austrian finance minister Markus Marterbauer called on the commission to examine energy-sector profit margins and earnings, and said he would be open to reintroducing a domestic cap on fuel margins. "Neither the state nor companies should profit from the high prices," he said. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US considers loaning more crude from SPR

17/09/26

US considers loaning more crude from SPR

Washington, 17 September (Argus) — A recent increase in crude prices has made it a "very real possibility" that the US Department of Energy (DOE) will offer an additional round of crude loans under a still ongoing 172mn bl drawdown from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), US energy secretary Chris Wright said. The escalation of hostilities in the Middle East has caused front month WTI crude prices to jump to about $101/bl, which is about 25pc more than futures prices for delivery six months from now. The steep backwardation in the futures market, if it continues, has made it a "very real possibility" that DOE will resume offering oil under the existing crude loan program, Wright said. "The market right now is saying, 'Hey, maybe we need that oil.' So quite possibly we will respond to that," Wright told reporters on Thursday. DOE has already loaned more than 130mn bl of crude or more than 75pc of the drawdown that President Donald Trump authorized in March, and another 3mn bl is scheduled to be released over the next few weeks. But the remaining crude of the authorization — about 38.5mn bl — has yet to be obligated. DOE got high interest in the program this spring, as traders took advantage of about a $30/bl premium in the front month crude contract over futures prices a year later. That profit was more than enough to cover a requirement to return more crude to the SPR than borrowed, which so far is putting about 1.25 bl into the SPR for each 1 bl borrowed. But by June, when DOE offered to loan out the remaining 40mn bl out of the 172mn bl authorization, the profitability of the trade had collapsed , and only 500,000 bl was contracted. "We had stopped selling because the prices were flat," Wright said. "The market today is pulling for it. If that remains, then it's very possible we will finish the allocation of oil we originally agreed to trade." The ongoing drawdown has pushed crude inventories in the SPR to a 44-year low of 285mn bl. Wright has previously said he expects crude to start returning to the SPR by early next year, but the reserve will remain partially depleted even after that refill process finishes in 2029. The US Congress has only provided $171mn to buy crude to refill the SPR, and Wright said he was looking at other options to refill the SPR. "We have a couple of other very creative ideas that I've hinted at for a while — you'll hear more about them later — where we're going to we're going to put quite a few more barrels into the SPR at no cost to the US taxpayers," Wright said at an event held by The Daily Caller . By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US Fed lifts rate for 1st time since 2023: Update

16/09/26

US Fed lifts rate for 1st time since 2023: Update

Adds comments from Warsh, other information Houston, 16 September (Argus) — US Federal Reserve policymakers raised their target interest rate by a quarter point today, the first hike since late 2023, citing "elevated" uncertainty due, in part, to "geopolitical developments." The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised the federal funds rate to 3.75-4pc, after holding the rate unchanged through five prior meetings this year. "Price stability is foundational to economic growth," Fed chair Kevin Warsh told reporters after the meeting. "We took an important step today to deliver it." In response to a question regarding rising borrowing costs, Warsh said the American economy appears to be strengthening, citing an increased demand for capital — an apparent reference to the artificial intelligence-fueled buildout of data centers. In their median estimates in their economic projections, officials penciled in one more likely quarter-point rate hike this year, with no hikes next year, even as eight of 18 survey participants forecast an additional hike next year. "While uncertainty remains elevated owing, in part, to geopolitical developments, domestic spending has been resilient," the FOMC statement said. "Productivity growth is strong, and capital investment is robust. Job gains have kept pace with the workforce... Inflation remains elevated." The rate hike comes as renewed fighting in the Mideast Gulf is intensifying a global energy squeeze that began with the start of the war at the end of February. It also comes less than two months before key midterm elections expected to cost President Donald Trump control of at least one of the two houses of congress. In their median estimates, officials project inflation, as measured by the PCE index, to end the year at 3.7pc, slowing to 2.3pc next year and to 2.1pc in 2028, up slightly from their 2pc long term target. They estimate GDP growth to end the year at 2.3pc, compared with 2.2pc in the prior projections in June. Unemployment is expected to end the year at 4.1pc, down slightly from 4.2pc in the June forecast. Ahead of the meeting Wednesday, the CME's FedWatch tool had a given 92pc probability that the Fed would raise rates by a quarter point, up from 33pc odds a month earlier. The latest move followed rate cuts of 75 basis points over the last three FOMC meetings of 2025, as the Fed continued to normalize rates from two-decade highs reached in the aftermath to the post-Covid-19 runup in inflation. But mounting policy uncertainty unleashed by Trump's tariff wars, a crackdown on immigrants and erratic spending policies had prompted the Fed to remain on hold throughout 2026 until Wednesday's decision. Over that period, Trump repeatedly attacked then-Fed chair Jerome Powell for resisting pressures to lower rates. Powell stepped down as planned in May, and was replaced by Warsh, a former banker and Fed governor who had been viewed as a critic of Fed rate policy as well as an inflation hawk. Wednesday's FOMC decision is the first rate change since Warsh took office. Financial markets have grown increasingly skittish this year. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury note tipped past 5pc on Wednesday for a third day, the highest intraday levels since 2007. The higher rates increase borrowing costs for consumers and businesses. Bond yields are surging on rising debt levels amid increases in spending on defense and artificial intelligence and concerns the energy crisis unleashed by the Mideast Gulf war will deepen. The consumer price index rose at a 3.4pc annual rate in August, the same as July. But gasoline prices rose by an annual 27.4pc in August, up from 24.6pc, while fuel oil prices rose by 52pc. By Bob Willis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US Fed lifts rate for 1st time since 2023

16/09/26

US Fed lifts rate for 1st time since 2023

Houston, 16 September (Argus) — US Federal Reserve policymakers raised their target interest rate by a quarter point today, the first hike since late 2023, citing "elevated" uncertainty due, in part, to "geopolitical developments." The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised the federal funds rate to 3.75-4pc, after holding the rate unchanged through five prior meetings this year. The rate hike comes as renewed fighting in the Mideast Gulf is intensifying a global energy squeeze that began with the start of the war at the end of February. It also comes less than two months before key midterm elections expected to cost President Donald Trump control of at least one of the two houses of congress. By Bob Willis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Jones Act waiver approvals slow, but data limited

16/09/26

Jones Act waiver approvals slow, but data limited

New York, 16 September (Argus) — US trade officials' implementation of a case-by-case review of Jones Act waiver requests since mid-August has cut in half the number of international vessels approved for domestic US shipping, according to sources, although a significant lag in waiver reports is obscuring the data. The more thorough review of requests for waivers from the law that limits US port-to-port shipping to US-built, -owned and -operated ships has led to only about half of all Jones Act waiver requests being approved since the revised process started, two industry sources familiar with the matter told Argus . This compares to a near-blanket approval extended previously to any shippers requesting the waiver since it first went into effect 17 March. US refiners, who have used the waivers extensively to move crude and products between domestic ports, are now seeing some denials because of the new requirement that they prove a Jones Act ship is not available, according to sources, but many are still getting approved. The US Maritime Administration (Marad) database where authorized Jones Act waiver movements are posted lists 255 voyages in total so far this year, including 30 posted since the start of the new review process on 17 August. But all of the voyages in the database as of 16 September loaded prior to the new process starting, meaning the tougher standards were likely not applied to them, denying the market of a clear picture. "We're all a little bit in the dark as far as an official loop closing" Jennifer Carpenter, president of the American Maritime Partnership, an industry coalition that represents domestic maritime interests, told Argus . "We know there have been approvals and denials, but we don't yet have visibility on which ones." Gauging how many waivers have been approved is also difficult due to a 10-day lag between when a ship granted the waiver offloads its cargo and when the waiver is reported by US officials, according to Aaron Smith, president of the Offshore Marine Service Association. In one example, oil major Chevron provisionally hired a Panama-flagged tanker, the Nave Perseus , to load high sulfur vacuum gasoil on 24 May for what should have been a less-than-two day voyage from El Segundo, California to San Francisco. But the vessel did not discharge the cargo at nearby Richmond, California, until 12 July, Vortexa data show. Yet the May loaded voyage is the second most-recent entry in Marad data because the projected discharge date provided was between 8 August and 2 September, putting its official report due date as 12 September. The case-by-case waiver process "is an improvement over a blanket waiver" according to Carpenter, but waivers can still discourage investments in US' domestic maritime revitalization efforts. "Nothing kills investment more than uncertainty and the current system seems designed to breed uncertainty for the domestic maritime industry," Smith said. By Charlotte Bawol and Eunice Bridges Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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