Iran News

The latest U.S. sanctions on Iranian petroleum exports deal a blow to Chinese refining giant Sinopec by targeting a terminal through which the state major handles one-fifth of its crude oil imports, industry executives and analysts said.The sanctions announced on Thursday further complicate U.S.-China relations, coming ahead of planned talks between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping later this month.The move follows China's decision to tighten controls on rare earth exports…

A Tanzania-flagged vessel is partially submerged south of Iran's Kish Island, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday, adding that the cause of the incident was under investigation.The agency cited an Iranian official as saying the nine crew members were rescued from the vessel, which was carrying 2,500 tons of white cement.The incident occurred around 13:30 local time.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned a network of shipping companies and vessels led by an Iraqi-Kittitian businessman for smuggling Iranian oil disguised as Iraqi oil.The administration of President Donald Trump is keeping pressure on Iran while nuclear talks have stalled. A sixth round of negotiations was suspended after the start of a 12-day war in June.A senior Iranian official said on Tuesday that the path to nuclear negotiations is not closed but U.S. demands for curbs on Iranian missiles are obstructing prospects for talks.The Treasury said the network…

Britain sanctioned an Iranian oil magnate and four companies on Thursday, saying they are part of a network that supports Tehran's overseas activities, including "destabilisation" in Ukraine and Israel.The sanctions include an asset freeze and travel ban on Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, and an asset freeze on companies in the shipping, petrochemical and financial sectors, the Foreign Office said."Iran's reliance on revenues from trading networks and connected organisations enables it to carry out its destabilising activities…

The Trump administration on Thursday issued more Iran-related sanctions, targeting 13 entities based in Hong Kong, China, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands, as well as eight vessels, the U.S. Treasury Department said.The measures cover Greek national Antonios Margaritis and his network of companies and vessels that Treasury said was involved in transporting Iranian oil exports in violation of sanctions.Treasury also designated Ares Shipping Limited in Hong Kong…

China's oil imports from Iran surged in June as shipments accelerated before the recent conflict between Israel and Iran and demand from independent refineries improved, analysts said.The world's top oil importer and biggest buyer of Iranian crude brought in more than 1.8 million barrels per day from June 1-20, according to ship-tracker Vortexa, a record high based on the firm's data.Kpler's data put the month-to-date average of China's Iranian oil and condensate imports at 1.46 million bpd as of June 27…

A damaged unit of the South Pars refinery's Phase 14, which was hit by Israel in its first strike on Iran's oil and gas sector, has returned to operation, the Iranian state-run agency Nour News reported on Thursday.South Pars, the world's biggest gas field, is located offshore in Iran's southern Bushehr province and is responsible for the lion's share of the country's gas production.Iran is the world's third largest gas producer after the United States and Russia.Gas production was not halted and the damaged unit was repaired in about 10 days…

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that China can continue to purchase oil from Iran after the U.S. bombed the OPEC member's nuclear facilities and hoped that China would also buy "plenty" of it from the United States."China can now continue to purchase Oil from Iran. Hopefully, they will be purchasing plenty from the U.S., also," he said in a post on Truth Social.Trump's post came after he had announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire following the U.S. bombing over the weekend on three nuclear facilities.

Iran and Israel accused each other of endangering commercial activity in sea lanes around the Gulf and the Red Sea at the UN's shipping agency on Wednesday, as their military conflict escalated.Iran's delegation told a session of the International Maritime Organization's security committee that Israel had in recent days extended its "unlawful attacks" to include petrochemical and gas infrastructure in Asalouyeh along Iran's Gulf coast."These actions directly endanger international maritime security and the global energy supply chain…

The Front Tyne oil tanker was sailing through the Gulf between Iran and the United Arab Emirates on Sunday when just past 9:40 a.m. shiptracking data appeared to show the massive vessel in Russia, in fields better known for barley and sugar beets.By 4:15 p.m., the ship's erratic signals indicated it was in southern Iran near the town of Bidkhun, before later placing it back and forth across the Gulf.Mass interference since the start of the conflict between Israel and Iran has affected nearly 1…

Former Iranian Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi has said that tankers and LNG cargoes should only transit the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian permission and this policy should be carried out from "tomorrow [Wednesday] for a hundred days."It was not immediately clear whether Khandouzi was echoing a plan under theIranian establishment's consideration or sharing his personal opinion.Tehran has long used the threat of blocking the narrow waterway as a means to ward off Western pressure, without acting on its threats.

The Front Tyne oil tanker was sailing through the Gulf between Iran and the United Arab Emirates on Sunday when just past 9:40 a.m. shiptracking data appeared to show the massive vessel in Russia, in fields better known for barley and sugar beets.By 4:15 p.m., the ship's erratic signals indicated it was in southern Iran near the town of Bidkhun, before later placing it back and forth across the Gulf.Mass interference since the start of the conflict between Israel and Iran has affected nearly 1…

When tensions rise in the Middle East, it can be helpful to look at what is not happening as much as what is.In the crude oil market, this means focusing on the fact that so far not a single barrel of crude oil supply has been lost. It is in the interests of all involved parties that this remains the case.Crude oil prices rose again in early trade in Asia on Monday, with global benchmark Brent futures LCOc1 gaining 2.1% to trade at $75.76 a barrel.This built upon the 7% leap on June 13…

Oil market participants have switched to dreading a shortage in fuel from focusing on impending oversupply in just two days this week.After Israel attacked Iran and Tehran pledged to retaliate, oil prices jumped as much as 13% to their highest since January as investors price in an increased probability of a major disruption in Middle East oil supplies.Part of the reason for the rapid spike is that spare capacity among OPEC and allies to pump more oil to offset any disruption is roughly equivalent to Iran's output…

Ships warned to avoid Red Sea, log Hormuz voyages after Israel hits IranMerchant shipping is continuing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz despite Israel's attacks on Iran on Friday, the multinational, U.S.-led Combined Maritime Force said, although some shipowners were looking to avoid the region.Iran has in the past threatened to close the critical Strait of Hormuz to traffic in retaliation for Western pressure. Any closure of the Strait could restrict trade and impact global oil prices."The Strait of Hormuz remains open and commercial traffic continues to flow uninterrupted…

Peter Sand, Xeneta Chief Analyst, shared insights following the escalation of the Israel-Iran conflict.“Geo-politics is once again threatening the safety and stability of global supply chains so we must hope for de-escalation in the conflict between Israel and Iran, with concerns it could see a de-facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz—a vital entry point for container ships calling at ports such as Jebel Ali and the wider Arabian Gulf region," said Sand.“Any closure of the Strait of Hormuz would see services re-routed…

The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on more than 20 companies in a network that it said has long sent Iranian oil to China, days after negotiators from Iran and the United States concluded a fourth round of nuclear talks.The network facilitated the shipment of oil worth billions of dollars to China on behalf of Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff and its front company, Sepehr Energy, Treasury said. Washington designated Sepehr in 2023.The U.S. sanctioned companies including CCIC Singapore PTE…

The United States on Wednesday issued new sanctions targeting Iran's oil exports, including against a China-based "teapot" oil refinery, as President Donald Trump's administration seeks to ramp up pressure on Tehran."Teapot" is an industry term for small independent oil refiners.The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement the action would increase pressure on Chinese importers of Iranian oil as Trump seeks to restore his "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran, which includes…

Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Monday seized two foreign tankers in the Persian Gulf carrying over 3 million litres (792,516 U.S.

Iraq's oil minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani has said that Iranian oil tankers seized by U.S. forces in the Gulf were using forged Iraqi documents.The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has restored "maximum pressure" on Iran, reviving a policy that seeks to isolate the country from the global economy and eliminate its oil export revenue in order to slow Tehran's development of a nuclear weapon.Abdel-Ghani was asked if he had received messages from the United States over the…

Iranian oil shipments into China are set to fall in the near-term after new U.S. sanctions on a refiner and tankers, driving up shipping costs, but traders said they expect buyers to find workarounds to keep at least some volumes flowing.Washington on Thursday imposed new sanctions on entities including Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical, a "teapot," or independent refinery in east China's Shandong province, and vessels that supplied oil to such plants in China, the top buyers of…

Iraqi naval forces have seized an unidentified ship in Iraqi territorial waters in the Gulf suspected of smuggling fuel, the naval forces said in a statement.Fuel smuggling is common in Gulf waters, where heavily subsidised fuel from some countries is sold on the black market to buyers across the region, though it is relatively rare for Iraqi authorities to seize ships.A naval patrol boat intercepted the ship on Tuesday after receiving intelligence about suspected illegal activity…

The United States imposed a fresh round of sanctions targeting Iran's oil industry on Monday, hitting more than 30 brokers, tanker operators, and shipping companies for their role in selling and transporting Iranian petroleum, the Treasury Department said.The announcement comes as U.S. President Donald Trump seeks to bring Iran's crude exports to zero to prevent the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and builds on the layers of sanctions already imposed by his government and the previous Biden administration."Iran continues to rely on a shadowy network of vessels…