Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Thursday Morning 9-17-26
Oil Falls As Saudi Arabia Boosts Oman Supply
2026-09-16 17:29 Shafaq News Oil prices fell on Wednesday after reports that Saudi Arabia was offering additional crude cargoes through Oman eased some concerns about Middle East supply disruptions, while a smaller-than-expected draw in US crude inventories added further downward pressure.
Brent crude futures fell $2.92, or 2.7%, to settle at $105.83 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate futures fell $3.40, or 3.2%, to close at $102.43.
Saudi Arabia is offering more loadings of crude oil to Asian refiners via ship-to-ship transfers off Oman's Sohar port, people familiar with the matter said, blunting some of the hit to global supply from attacks on the country's East-West pipeline to the Red Sea.
"News around Saudi Arabia exporting from the Gulf suggests concerns that the disruption could be larger are easing," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
Oil prices had gained more than $3 in the previous session after shipping industry sources said crude loadings at Saudi Arabia's Red Sea export hub of Yanbu had been suspended and Riyadh had cancelled some cargo deliveries to European customers. The suspension followed strikes on the East-West pipeline, which feeds the Saudi port of Yanbu.
Yanbu became Saudi Arabia's main outlet for oil exports after Iran began blockading the Strait of Hormuz after US and Israeli attacks on the country at the end of February. Prior to the war, Hormuz was the conduit for one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supply.
Visible vessel passage through the Strait of Hormuz remained in the single digits at four on Tuesday, down from seven a day earlier, preliminary shipping data showed on Wednesday. That was well below the 10-day average of 18.
Oil prices came under further pressure after the US Energy Information Administration on Wednesday reported a smaller-than-expected draw from US crude inventories last week. Crude oil stocks in the top-producing nation fell about 640,000 barrels last week, the EIA data showed, compared to expectations of a 1.62 million barrel draw according to a Reuters poll of energy analysts.
US gasoline and distillate inventories rose last week, EIA data showed. The rise in diesel inventories was bigger than expected, while gasoline stockpiles were expected to have declined last week, according to the Reuters poll.
The data was bearish for oil prices as it showed refined product stockpiles are maintaining themselves and even rising slightly while crude oil declines are flatlining, said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital.
Other analysts warned the data has done little to change a market that remains on tenterhooks as violence continues to escalate in the Middle East.
"All in all, today's data did little to sway us away from a long-standing bullish trading stance where buying significant price pullbacks remains much preferable to any attempts to pick a top to this bull market," oil trading advisor Ritterbusch and Associates told clients in a note.
Tensions ratcheted higher in the Middle East as Saudi warplanes pounded Yemen and Iran-backed Houthi fighters launched drones and missiles at Saudi cities. The Houthis, who have swept through Yemeni towns along the Red Sea since last week, said they had launched fresh strikes on Yanbu.
Citi expects near-term escalation in the Middle East to continue supporting crude oil and refined fuel prices before the Strait of Hormuz eventually reopens in the fourth quarter of 2026 with support from regional diplomatic efforts, the bank said in a note.
Diesel has become the top concern in global oil markets as tensions escalated in recent weeks, as the Middle East is a top supplier of both the fuel and the types of crude oil grades best suited for its production. Ukrainian attacks on refineries in Russia, another major diesel supplier, have further tightened the market and sent prices to record highs.
European gasoil futures, a benchmark for diesel prices, settled at a record high on Tuesday. US ultra-low sulfur diesel futures also settled at a record high on Tuesday.
"Europe has lost substantial diesel and jet fuel supply from the Middle East, while ongoing tensions in Eastern Europe have disrupted output at several major Russian refineries and prompted Moscow to restrict fuel exports," said Frank Walbaum, market analyst at Naga.com.
The Russian government has decided to extend restrictions on diesel exports for fuel producers until the end of October, Vedomosti daily reported late on Tuesday, citing two unidentified sources.
"I would expect, unless there is a peace deal or an improvement in the situation in Russia, that diesel prices stay supported," said Staunovo at UBS. (Reuters)
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Oil-Falls-as-Saudi-Arabia-Offers-More-Crude-Through-Oman
Oil Prices Retreat On New Saudi Oman Route
2026-09-17 01:16 Shafaq News Oil prices eased in Asian trade on Thursday, extending losses on reports of Saudi Arabia offering extra crude cargoes through Oman, which reduced fears of supply disruptions, but stayed above $100 on concerns about the Middle East conflict expanding.
Brent crude futures dropped 19 cents, or 0.2%, to $105.64 a barrel by 0347 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 33 cents, or 0.3%, at $102.10. Both contracts fell about $3 on Wednesday.
"Concerns over supply tightness eased slightly following news that Saudi Arabia would ship cargo via Oman," said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, chief strategist of Nissan Securities Investment, a unit of Nissan Securities.
"Expectations of progress toward easing tensions in the Middle East ahead of U.S.-China summit next week are also capping price gains," he added.
Saudi Arabia is offering more loadings of crude oil to Asian refiners via ship-to-ship transfers off Oman's Sohar port, people familiar with the matter said, blunting some of the hit to global supply from attacks on the Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline to the Red Sea.
However, some analysts were expecting these flows to only ease a portion of the supply loss from the kingdom's Red Sea port, capping the declines in oil prices.
The pick-up in flows through the Strait of Hormuz "is only partly offsetting lost export barrels following drone attacks that shut Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline," Saxo Bank analysts said in a note.
Oil prices rose to about four-month highs earlier this week after shipping industry sources said crude loadings at Saudi Arabia's Red Sea export hub of Yanbu had been suspended and Riyadh had cancelled some cargo deliveries to European customers. The suspension followed attacks on the East-West pipeline, which feeds the Saudi port of Yanbu.
Yanbu became Saudi Arabia's main outlet for oil exports after Iran began blockading the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S. and Israel attacked the country at the end of February. Prior to the war, Hormuz was the conduit for one-fifth of the world's oil supply.
Two pumping stations serving the East-West pipeline were damaged in an attack last week, with a repair timeline unclear, according to assessments from three oil and security sources.
Despite the oil price decline on Thursday, worries about the intensifying Middle East war remain.
Saudi warplanes pounded Yemen and Houthi fighters launched drones and missiles at Saudi cities, the Iran-backed movement said on Wednesday, after a lightning advance that has extended Tehran's reach in the Middle East war.
Singapore's DBS Bank assumes in its base case scenario for the fourth quarter that the U.S. war with Iran will dial down and Brent will stabilise in the $85 to $95 range.
"However, under the bear case scenario currently prevailing, with attacks and incidents in Hormuz and Red Sea continuing, prices could spike towards $120/bbl levels before potentially normalising back towards $100/bbl," DBS Bank's head of energy research, Suvro Sarkar, said.
(Reuters) https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Oil-prices-retreat-on-new-Saudi-Oman-route
USD/IQD Exchange Rates Surge In Baghdad, Erbil
2026-09-17 04:01 Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Erbil The US dollar opened higher against the Iraqi dinar in Baghdad and Erbil on Thursday, hovering around 159,000 dinars per $100.
According to a Shafaq News market survey, the dollar traded at 158,850 dinars per $100 at Baghdad’s Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya central exchanges, up from 157,250 dinars at Wednesday’s open.
In Baghdad’s currency exchange shops, the dollar was selling at 159,250 dinars per $100 and buying at 158,250 dinars.
In Erbil, exchange shops sold $100 for 158,500 dinars and bought it for 158,400 dinars.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/USD-IQD-exchange-rates-surge-in-Baghdad-Erbil-0-5-0
German Exports To Iraq Hit $669M In Six Months
2026-09-16 10:07 Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Berlin German exports to Iraq rose from $284 million in the first quarter of 2026 to $385 million in the second, bringing the first-half total to about $669 million, according to Germany’s Federal Statistical Office.
Among the products listed, tractors and pharmaceutical products for therapeutic or preventive use led at about $54 million each, followed by blood products, vaccines and immunological preparations at $39 million and passenger vehicles at $37 million.
Packaging machinery accounted for $23 million, electrical control and distribution equipment $22.8 million, and medical and surgical instruments $20.7 million. Centrifuges and filtering or purification machinery totaled $14.4 million, while refrigeration equipment, refrigerators and freezers reached $2.4 million.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/German-exports-to-Iraq-hit-669M-in-six-months
US: Hormuz oil flows hit 18M barrels
2026-09-16 11:22 Shafaq News- Washington US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, on Wednesday, said oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had reached a single-day peak of nearly 18 million barrels, while the seven-day average had risen to around 11 million barrels per day.
Preliminary ship-tracking data showed that only four vessels crossed the strait on Tuesday, well below the 10-day average of 18, Reuters reported. Some vessels may have passed through with their tracking systems switched off.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday that it had shot down a US-made MQ-9 drone over Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. The US had not immediately confirmed the claim.
The IRGC also said on Tuesday that it had downed three MQ-1 drones over and around the strategic waterway.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/US-Hormuz-oil-flows-hit-18M-barrels