The US will impose a 35pc tariff on all imports from Canada effective on 1 August, President Donald Trump said in a 10 July letter to Canadian prime minister Mark Carney. The letter, which Trump posted on social media, noted that Canada previously planned retaliatory tariffs in response to the US' first tariff threats in the spring. He repeated his earliest justification for the tariffs — the illegal smuggling of fentanyl into the US from Canada — and said he would consider "an adjustment" to the tariffs if Canada worked with him to stop that flow.
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Iran war cuts global oil demand by 4mn b/d: Vitol
Iran war cuts global oil demand by 4mn b/d: Vitol
Lausanne, 21 April (Argus) — Global oil demand has fallen by about 4mn b/d since the start of the war in the Middle East, compared with supply losses of around 12mn b/d, trading firm Vitol's chief executive Russell Hardy said today. Speaking at the FT Commodities Global Summit in Lausanne, Hardy said demand would have to fall further to rebalance the market if the strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, with recessionary consequences. Most of the drop in oil demand so far has occurred in the Middle East, alongside weaker consumption in Asia, he said. Hardy estimates that global refinery output is down by around 6mn b/d from pre-war levels, reflecting disruptions to crude feedstock supplies and infrastructure damage. If the disruption carries on, "the problem gets more difficult to manage, because so far we've borrowed supply from various alternatives", he said, referring to falling oil-on-water inventories and emergency stock releases co-ordinated by the IEA. Cumulative global oil production losses since the US-Iran war began on 28 February now total about 600mn-700mn bl and would rise to around 1bn bl even if the strait of Hormuz reopens in the near term, Hardy said. "By the time this is over, we will have lost 300mn-400mn bl of product inventories," he said. Even if oil exports resume soon, recovery across the supply chain would take time, he said. "The restart of production, the restart of refineries, there's an awful lot of infrastructure that's been shut down … it takes some time to put all of that back." Mideast Gulf producers including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait and the UAE have been forced to shut in upstream output because of limited alternatives to shipping their crude through the strait of Hormuz. Energy infrastructure across the region has also been damaged by military attacks during the conflict. Hardy said oil prices since the war began have been driven by concern over near-term physical supply availability. "The price action is in physical oil at the front," he said. "The third quarter onwards is less relevant in people's thinking because if the strait opens in 10 days' time, yes, recovery will take time, but oil will flow, and eastern customers will be better supplied for June and July." A longer-term impact of the war could be a renewed push to build strategic fuel stocks, Hardy said, although such efforts would take time. "If you want a strategic initiative of jet fuel, you've got to arrange tanks, airport access, and build those inventories," he said. By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Renewables mean energy security: Turkey, Australia
Renewables mean energy security: Turkey, Australia
Edinburgh, 21 April (Argus) — Energy security will come through "strong decarbonisation" and shifting to renewables because fossil fuels "do not guarantee supply security", the climate ministers of Turkey and Australia said today, adding that the topic of transitioning away from fossil fuels will be further addressed at the UN Cop 31 climate summit. The countries are working together to prepare the Cop 31 climate summit in Antalya later this year, with Turkey hosting the conference and Australia heading climate negotiations. The energy crisis stemming from the war in the Mideast Gulf has "clearly shown us that fossil fuels do not guarantee energy supply security" and countries should invest in "alternative energy sources" to support stability, resilient and clean development, upcoming Cop 31 climate summit president and Turkey's environment minister Murat Kurum said today. "Every country has to be independent and this should come through clean energy sources", including renewables, hydrogen and ammonia, he said. "We know that relying solely on fossil fuels means walking towards volatility, insecurity and climate collapse", he said during the 17th Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin as he laid out Turkey's vision focused on implementation for Cop 31. "As we all agreed in Dubai, we emphasised how important the need for alternative energy sources and the diversification of countries' energy is, in line with national circumstances," he said. Almost 200 countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels at the Cop 28 climate summit in 2023 and developed nations agreed to deliver $300bn/yr to developing countries by 2035 at Cop 29 in Baku. Kurum urged countries to fulfil commitments made at previous climate summits, including on finance and energy, asking those that did not summit climate plans — or nationally determined contributions (NDCs) — to do so. Around 43 countries have yet to submit their NDCs, according to Kurum. Australia's climate and energy minister Chris Bowen said the crisis is a unique opportunity to show that energy reliability, sovereignty and security go hand in hand with "strong decarbonisation", and he welcomed Germany's push for a discussion on electrification at the Petersberg Climate Dialogue. German environment minister Carsten Schneider said today he wanted to discuss how to tackle the topic of electrification before Cop 31 and how countries can successfully advance the topic. "Doubling down on fossil fuels is not the answer to that crisis," Bowen said. "Wind cannot be subject to sanctions, sun cannot be interrupted by a blockage", he said, referring to the shipping interruption in the strait of Hormuz caused by the US-Israel-Iran war. "At the end of the day, we have to take steps to help countries to transition towards clean energies and in terms of phasing out fossil fuels," Kurum said. He said Cop 31 will address the phase out of fossil fuels, so the world moves away from them. Clean energy will be one of the topics of Turkey's action agenda at Cop 31, Kurum said. Bowen pointed out there were "three processes" under way ahead of Cop 31, including the Belem roadmap on transitioning away from fossil fuels under the responsibility of the Brazilian Cop 30 presidency, and a global implementation accelerator and the Belem Mission to 1.5°C that were both agreed by the Cop parties last year. "I am very confident we can bring these processes together," Bowen said. The Cop 30 presidency last year pledged to oversee the creation of a roadmap on fossil fuels as countries failed to agree to address the topic in the summit's text . By Caroline Varin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US seizes sanctioned VLCC in Indian Ocean
US seizes sanctioned VLCC in Indian Ocean
London, 21 April (Argus) — US forces have boarded and seized a laden very large crude carrier (VLCC) in the Indian Ocean that was carrying Iranian crude in defiance of US sanctions, marking the latest enforcement action against the dark fleet moving Iranian supply to Asia-Pacific. The 2mn bl capacity Tifani had loaded at Iran's Kharg Island terminal on 5 April and was intercepted south of the Bay of Bengal, probably on route to Malaysian waters where it had called previously. These are a regular staging area for ship-to-ship (STS) transfers of sanctioned crude. The tanker discharged at two Chinese ports last year. "Overnight, US forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding of the stateless sanctioned M/T Tifani without incident in the INDOPACOM (Indo-Pacific Command) area of responsibility," US Central Command said. "International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels," CENTCOM said, adding that the US Department of War "will continue to deny illicit actors and their vessels freedom of manoeuvre in the maritime domain." Tifani is registered to a business in Suriname and is part of the 'dark fleet' moving sanctioned crude from Iran, Russia and Venezuela to foreign markets. The tanker is using a false flag, according to the International Maritime Organization's database at the time of interdiction. Malaysian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) waters off the east coast of Johor have emerged as a key hub for STS transfers of Iranian crude, with dark fleet tankers frequently used to obscure the origin of cargoes before onward delivery to Chinese independent refiners. By Harry Heath Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Iran’s parliament speaker rejects talks amid US threats
Iran’s parliament speaker rejects talks amid US threats
Dubai, 21 April (Argus) — Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has downplayed the prospects of a new round of peace talks with the US in Islamabad and reiterated Tehran's readiness to return to armed conflict if the current two-week ceasefire expires without a deal this week. Iran does "not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats", Ghalibaf said on Tuesday in a post on social media platform X. Ghalibaf was referring to a possible second round of Pakistani-mediated talks that both sides had suggested could take place this week in Islamabad. He has emerged as one of the key figures in Iran's wartime leadership structure. A first round of talks took place on 11 April, just days after a two-week ceasefire was agreed late on 7 April. Those negotiations, which lasted 21 hours, failed to produce any agreement. The ceasefire is due to expire on 22 April. US president Donald Trump said on Sunday that he would send his envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner to Islamabad for a new round of talks this week. US vice-president JD Vance, who led the US delegation in the first round, will not take part because of security concerns, Trump said. Tehran has since suggested it would not send a delegation to the Pakistani capital, citing "excessive US demands" and the ongoing US naval blockade on Iranian ports, which it has described as a violation of the ceasefire agreement. Ghalibaf reiterated that position today, saying Trump was seeking to "turn this negotiating table… into a table of surrender, or the basis on which to justify renewed warmongering". Over the weekend, Trump repeated his threat to attack Iranian infrastrcture, saying Washington was offering Iran "a very fair and reasonable DEAL" and warning that if Tehran refused, "the US is going to knock out every single power plant, and every single bridge in Iran". Ghalibaf appeared to respond to that rhetoric, saying Iran is "prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield" if the ceasefire expires and the US and Israel resume attacks on Iran. By Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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