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Oman Refinery Exports First Shipment of High-quality Diesel

Duqm Refinery Project (from the OQ Group website)
Duqm Refinery Project (from the OQ Group website)
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Oman Refinery Exports First Shipment of High-quality Diesel

Duqm Refinery Project (from the OQ Group website)
Duqm Refinery Project (from the OQ Group website)

Oman's Duqm Refinery successfully exported its first shipment of high-quality diesel as per international specifications.

This coincides with the company getting closer to achieving commercial operation, with trial operations continuing to progress, exceeding 81 percent, while the percentage of construction work has exceeded more than 99 percent, Oman's state news agency reported.

The trial operations included testing all supply chains at the Duqm Refinery, including crude oil storage facilities at the Ras Markaz and an 80-kilometre-long crude oil transport pipeline.

In recent months, the Ras Markaz crude oil tanks received more than three million barrels of Omani and Kuwaiti crude oil, which were later pumped from Ras Markaz to the refinery complex in Duqm via the oil transportation pipeline.

The trial operations also included the export of the first shipments of naphtha and fuel oil via product storage and export dock at Duqm Port.

The Duqm Refinery Project is a joint project between the OQ Group and Kuwait Petroleum International Company and is located in the heart of the Special Economic Zone in Duqm.

The project includes three main packages capable of producing diesel, jet fuel, naphtha, liquefied petroleum gas, sulfur, and petroleum coal.

The Duqm Refinery has a capacity of 230,000 barrels per day and is capable of dealing with various types of crude oil, including Omani and Kuwaiti crude.

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Business

Asian Markets Mixed after Oil Gains

Japan's 10-year yield reached a fresh 30-year high in morning trade on Friday. Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP
Japan's 10-year yield reached a fresh 30-year high in morning trade on Friday. Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP
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Asian Markets Mixed after Oil Gains

Japan's 10-year yield reached a fresh 30-year high in morning trade on Friday. Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP
Japan's 10-year yield reached a fresh 30-year high in morning trade on Friday. Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP

Asian markets were mixed Friday after recent oil price surges and as US and Japanese bond yields hit multi-year highs with no end in sight for the Middle East war.

A two-month extension of a trade truce between the United States and China left several issues unresolved, analysts said, shifting lingering risks into the future.

Oil prices eased slightly on Friday, with Brent Crude shedding 0.7 percent after spiking more than three percent Thursday to extend previous gains, AFP said.

Global stocks had mostly fallen Thursday, as the benchmark US 10-year Treasury yield rose to its highest level since 2007, and the 30-year yield reached its highest since 2004.

Japan's 10-year yield reached a fresh 30-year high in morning trade on Friday.

"Bond yields are bouncing around like a see-saw," Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, wrote in a note.

"There is no clear direction for markets," she said, listing various unknown factors such as "are we in a bond crisis or not?" and "Is the Iran war getting worse or is the situation improving?"

"While these questions remain unanswered, volatility will continue to dominate, especially in the commodity and bond markets," Brooks said.

Tokyo rose 1.2 percent Friday, but Hong Kong fell nearly two percent, with Sydney and Jakarta also down. Shanghai, Taipei and Seoul were closed for holidays.

Stock falls this week have been mild, along with "fairly moderate" movements in foreign exchange markets despite nonetheless a "clear preference for the dollar", Brooks said.

Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama told reporters that US President Donald Trump had expressed concerns over the weak yen during a bilateral meeting in Washington this week.

Trump hosted Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a lavish state dinner at the White House on Thursday, after a day of pomp and ceremony that masked deep tensions between the rival superpowers.

While business was on the menu at the state dinner, expectations of any major breakthroughs from Xi's visit are low.

One minor success -- the extension of a trade truce by two months until January -- was less than the two years that the Chinese had been hoping for.

Lloyd Chan at MUFG said that "renewed geopolitical risks in the Middle East are occurring against an already tight oil-market backdrop, raising concerns over both supply and inflation".

"Meanwhile, US-China trade risks remain in the background," he added.

"The trade truce has been extended by just two months to 10 January, leaving issues over tariffs, agricultural purchases, rare earths, and technology restrictions unresolved."

Business

US Business Lobbies Say Diesel Export Ban Would Backfire

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright holds a press conference on the sidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna, Austria, September 14, 2026. (Reuters)
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright holds a press conference on the sidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna, Austria, September 14, 2026. (Reuters)
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US Business Lobbies Say Diesel Export Ban Would Backfire

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright holds a press conference on the sidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna, Austria, September 14, 2026. (Reuters)
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright holds a press conference on the sidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna, Austria, September 14, 2026. (Reuters)

Trade associations representing large US companies and energy suppliers urged President Donald Trump to resist calls for a diesel fuel export ban, arguing the move would backfire.

"Export bans would lead to less fuel production, tighter supplies, and rising costs for American families, farmers, and truckers," said the September 23 letter, which was signed by the US Business Roundtable, the American Petroleum Institute and more than two dozen other trade groups.

"While we understand the urge for a silver bullet, there are no easy answers."

High fuel prices have emerged as a major drag in the upcoming midterm elections for Trump's Republican Party. Candidates from rural regions in Iowa and other states have urged an export ban on diesel, which is also used in trucks and other hauling vehicles.

While Trump administration officials such as Energy Secretary Chris Wright have rejected a ban, Trump himself on Tuesday signaled support for the move.

"I've called for that too. I've said let's not send out the diesel," Trump said on Tuesday.

Diesel prices in the United States have hit records due to the ongoing US-Iran war. Diesel prices currently average $6.51 per gallon, up 76 percent from the year-ago level.

The business groups argue exports allow "US refineries to balance their systems and maximize production," according to the letter. "An export ban would require refineries to throttle utilization to reduce diesel production to equal domestic demand. Falling utilization would result in less gasoline and jet fuel production and higher prices for those products as well."

Andy Lipow, of Lipow Oil Associates, a Houston consultancy, said there is limited storage capacity in the US Gulf Coast, home to much of the nation's refining capacity.

"If you were to ban diesel exports, the refiners have two choices. One is find a place to store it, or two is not to make it," said Lipow.

Business

Iraq Exports 2.6 million bpd from Southern Ports

An oil field in the Dibs area on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq (Reuters)
An oil field in the Dibs area on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq (Reuters)
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Iraq Exports 2.6 million bpd from Southern Ports

An oil field in the Dibs area on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq (Reuters)
An oil field in the Dibs area on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq (Reuters)

Iraq is exporting around 2.6 million barrels of oil per day from its southern ports so far in September and producing more than 3 million bpd from its southern oilfields, Bassem Abdul Karim, head of Iraq's Basra Oil Company, said on Thursday.

Abdul Karim, speaking at an energy conference in Basra, added that Iraq is transporting around 250,000 bpd of Basra crude to Kirkuk for exports via Ceyhan in Türkiye.

On September 16, Iraq launched a pilot operation to transport crude oil by road from its southern oilfields to a Kirkuk storage facility in an effort to boost supplies to the northern export system and potentially increase shipments through Türkiye's Ceyhan port.

The initiative forms part of broader Iraqi efforts to increase flows through the northern export route after the US-Israeli war on Iran disrupted Iraq's shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, its main export route.