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April 10, 2026/Oilprice.com

Tom Kool
Editor, Oilprice.com

Despite the ongoing escalation in the Middle East, crude heads for its biggest weekly loss in months.

Friday, April 10, 2026

Is there a ceasefire or not? That is the ultimate question asked by the oil markets as the Strait of Hormuz remains open, strikes on energy infrastructure in the Middle East continue unabated (one could even say the damage reported by Saudi Arabia should be a turbocharger for prices) and the Lebanese issue continues to escalate. Nevertheless, oil is set to post its largest weekly loss since July 2025, with ICE Brent closing this week around $96 per barrel. 

Ceasefire Or Not, the Hormuz Is Still Closed. Despite the oil market’s hopes for a gradual opening of the Strait of Hormuz, commercial navigation through the waterway remains dominated by Tehran with Iranian cargoes accounting for all crude and refined product transits over the past two days. 

Saudi Admits Substantial Damage to Fields. Saudi Arabia reported that this week’s attack on its 7 million b/d East-West pipeline led to a loss of 700,000 b/d in throughput capacity, whilst a separate drone strike on its Khurais facility curbed Aramco’s crude output capacity by 300,000 b/d.

OPEC+ Output Collapses in March. According to S&P Global, members of OPEC+ slashed their combined production by 8.11 million b/d last month, seeing total output drop to 34.78 million b/d due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with Iraq cutting the most as it shut in some 2.75 million b/d. 

China Allows State Refiners to Draw SPRs. The Chinese Energy Ministry has given state-owned refiners such as Sinopec and CNPC the approval to tap strategic oil reserves held in commercial storages, allowing the drawdown of up to 1 million b/d of crude from the 1.4 billion barrels of SPR inventories.

Rare Russian Tanker Bursts into Gulf. A Russian-flagged VLCC tanker passed through the Strait of Hormuz into the Persian Gulf, a rare move as ships usually seek to escape the blocked waterway, however considering the ship’s history hauling Venezuelan oil it would most probably sail to Iran.  

Japan Releases SPR for Struggling Refiners. Japan’s government plans to release 20 days’ worth of oil reserves to ensure stable domestic supply, tapping into its strategic petroleum reserves since March 16, with the public inventory of available crude currently totalling of 143 days of consumption.   

Brazil Fights Its War on Oil Export Tax. Brazil will appeal a federal court ruling that suspended the government’s recently announced 12% crude oil export tax for foreign investors such as TotalEnergies, Sinopec or Equinor, with Brazilian judges claiming such a windfall levy would be unconstitutional. 

Shell Aims for Venezuelan Gas in 2027. Energy major Shell (LON:SHEL) announced it plans to commission the Loran-Manatee offshore field straddling the border between Venezuela and Trinidad & Tobago next year, building up 1 Bcf/d of takeaway pipeline capacity to feed its gas to Atlantic LNG. 

China Issues Additional Import Quotas. China has granted private refiners – the so-called teapots operating in the northeast of the country – additional import quotas totalling almost 55 million tonnes (402 million barrels) to guarantee high run rates as Beijing seeks to ensure stable fuel supply. 

Mexico Makes U-Turn on Fracking. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has hinted at a potential government approval for fracking, marking a departure from her previous support for a full ban on hydraulic fracturing, as PEMEX seeks to lower its dependence on US natural gas imports. 

US Tests Market Appetite for Sour SPR Barrels. The US Department of Energy is offering 30 million barrels of crude oil from its West Hackberry storage site, with proposals for potential oil swap deals expected until April 13, the third solicitation so far from Trump’s 172-million-barrel SPR pledge. 

Libya Rejoices as New Discoveries Abound. Libya’s National Oil Corp. announced the discovery of three new oil and gas fields in the Ghadames and Murzuq basins, with the finds coming on the back of NOC teaming up with Eni, Repsol and Algeria’s Sonatrach on the three respective exploration areas.  

Indonesia Diverts LNG for Domestic Use. Indonesian authorities have issued a directive to defer 9 LNG export cargoes from the country’s 11.5 mtpa Tangguh facility and instead use them domestically, adjourning prospective delivery dates to 2027 as Southeast Asia faces a gas supply crunch. 

Relief in Sight for Japan’s Struggling Reactor. Japan’s leading generation company Tokyo Electric Power (TYO:9501) expects the world’s largest nuclear reactor in Kashiwazaki-Kariwa to start commercial operations on April 16, providing a massive boost to the country’s costly dependence on LNG imports.