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Iraq Resumes Kurdish Oil Exports to Türkiye after 2-1/2-year Halt

A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, February 19, 2014. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, February 19, 2014. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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Iraq Resumes Kurdish Oil Exports to Türkiye after 2-1/2-year Halt

A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, February 19, 2014. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, February 19, 2014. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Crude oil flowed on Saturday through a pipeline from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq to Türkiye for the first time in 2-1/2 years, after an interim deal broke a deadlock, Iraq's oil ministry said.

The resumption started at 6 a.m. local time (0300 GMT), according to a statement from the ministry.

"Operations started at a rapid pace and with complete smoothness without recording any significant technical problems," the ministry said, Reuters reported.

The agreement between Iraq's federal government, the Kurdistan regional government (KRG) and foreign oil producers operating in the region will allow 180,000 to 190,000 barrels per day of crude to flow to Türkiye's Ceyhan port, Iraq's oil minister told Kurdish broadcaster Rudaw on Friday.

The US had pushed for a restart, which is expected to eventually bring up to 230,000 bpd of crude back to international markets at a time when OPEC+ is boosting output to gain market share.

Iraq's delegate to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Mohammed al-Najjar, said his country can export more than it is now after the resumption of flows via the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline, in addition to other planned projects at Basra port, state news agency INA reported on Saturday.

"OPEC member states have the right to demand an increase in their (production) shares especially if they have projects that led to an increase in production capacity," he said.

Iraq's oil ministry undersecretary Bassem Mohamed told Reuters that the resumption of Kurdish oil flows will help raise the country's exports to nearly 3.6 million bpd in the coming days.

Iraq's production and export levels will remain within its OPEC quota of 4.2 million bpd, he said.

Iraq, the group's largest overproducer, was among states that submitted updated plans to OPEC in April to make further oil output cuts to compensate for pumping above agreed quotas.

Flows through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline were halted in March 2023 when the International Chamber of Commerce ordered Türkiye to pay Iraq $1.5 billion in damages for unauthorised exports by the Kurdish regional authorities.

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar also confirmed the resumption of oil exports to Türkiye from Iraq in a post on X.

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Taiwan Business Group Urges Beijing, Taipei to Keep Politics Out of Trade

A person looks at a stock market graph inside the Taiwan Stock Exchange in Taipei, Taiwan, 20 April 2026. (EPA)
A person looks at a stock market graph inside the Taiwan Stock Exchange in Taipei, Taiwan, 20 April 2026. (EPA)
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Taiwan Business Group Urges Beijing, Taipei to Keep Politics Out of Trade

A person looks at a stock market graph inside the Taiwan Stock Exchange in Taipei, Taiwan, 20 April 2026. (EPA)
A person looks at a stock market graph inside the Taiwan Stock Exchange in Taipei, Taiwan, 20 April 2026. (EPA)

The head of one of Taiwan's top business groups said on Monday both Beijing and Taipei should leave politics out of resuming normal trade and tourism exchanges, after China unveiled new incentives for the island.

China, which views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, announced measures this month which include easing tourism curbs and food imports, but said they had to be based on "opposing Taiwan independence".

China refuses to talk to Taiwan President Lai ‌Ching-te saying he ‌is a "separatist", and has stepped up political and economic ‌pressure ⁠in recent years, ⁠targeting tourism and imports of food, as well as holding regular war drills.

"As soon as there is an opening up, it should be as much as possible be systematic and normalized to maintain the long-term stability of business and trade exchanges," said Paul Hsu, chairman of the General Chamber of Commerce.

Flanked by representatives of the tourist and food sectors, he ⁠urged China to ensure stability in trade ties ‌rather than sudden stops and starts, in ‌comments to reporters in Taipei.

No matter which political party runs a city ‌or county, China should offer equal treatment, especially in southern Taiwan, ‌Hsu added, referring to a stronghold of Lai's Democratic Progressive Party.

China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China's new steps came at the end of a visit to Beijing by Taiwan opposition leader Cheng Li-wun, ‌which she described as a journey of peace, on which she met President Xi Jinping.

Taiwan's government should ⁠also "proactively face" China's offers ⁠of opening up, Hsu's group, which represents more than a million companies, said in a statement accompanying the remarks.

Group members' votes would go to whoever was good for Taiwan industry, Hsu said, adding that he was representing non-partisan industry voices.

"As long as you put forth good policies, we will offer support. But if you stand against us, I'm sorry, I can't support you. We have a vote - we are a democratic society."

Taiwan will hold key local elections in November, with the next presidential vote scheduled for early 2028.

On Sunday, Taiwan's China-policy making Mainland Affairs Council said the government would address the "reasonable demands" of industry, but warned it not to "become tools manipulated and exploited by the Chinese communists".

Business

Oil Prices and Stocks Climb as US-Iran Standoff Keeps Strait of Hormuz in Limbo

Tankers and gas carriers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP)
Tankers and gas carriers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP)
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Oil Prices and Stocks Climb as US-Iran Standoff Keeps Strait of Hormuz in Limbo

Tankers and gas carriers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP)
Tankers and gas carriers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP)

Oil prices climbed more than 5% while Asian shares also advanced Monday as a standoff between Iran and the US prevented tankers from using the Strait of Hormuz.

The Gulf waterway was closed again after Iran reversed a decision to reopen the strait and President Donald Trump said a US Navy blockade of Iranian ports remains in effect.

US benchmark crude gained 5.6% to $87.20 a barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, was up 5.3% at $95.16 a barrel.

Despite renewed doubts about how soon ships will again transport the vast amounts oil the world gets from the Middle East, share prices were mostly higher in Asia.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 gained 1% to 59,045.45, while South Korea's Kospi was up 1.1% at 6,260.92.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.8% to 26,373.71 and the Shanghai Composite index advanced 0.6% to 4,075.08.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was nearly unchanged at 8,943.90.

In Taiwan, the Taiex jumped 1.4%.

“The problem for markets is not the absence of hope; it is the overpricing of it,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary. “The latest move higher in equities has started to feel less like conviction and more like momentum feeding on itself.”

On Friday, oil prices had dropped back to where they were in the early days of the Iran war, and US stocks raced to a fresh record after Iran said the strait was open again for commercial tankers carrying crude from the Gulf to customers worldwide.

A freer flow of oil could relieve pressure on prices for gasoline and all kinds of other products that get moved by vehicles. It could even ultimately help people pay less on credit-card interest and mortgage bills.

The S&P 500 leaped 1.2% to an all-time high of 7,126.06, closing out a third straight week of big gains, its longest streak since Halloween.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.8% to 49,447.43. The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.5% to 24,468.48.

The US stock market has jumped more than 12% since hitting a bottom in late March on hopes the United States and Iran can avoid a worst-case scenario for the global economy despite their war.

The price for a barrel of benchmark US crude had plunged 9.4% after Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, posted on X that passage for all commercial vessels through the strait “is declared completely open” as a ceasefire appears to be holding in Lebanon.

Brent crude fell 9.1%.

After Araghchi's announcement, Trump said on his social media network that the US Navy’s blockade of Iranian ports remained “in full force” pending a deal on the war, though he also suggested that “should go very quickly in that most of the points are already negotiated.”

President Donald Trump said Sunday that the US had seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that tried to get around a naval blockade. Iran’s joint military command said Tehran would respond soon and called the US seizure an act of piracy.

A fragile, two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran is set to expire Wednesday, while escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz raises questions over new talks to end the war.

Since the war began, market sentiment has swung between optimism and gloom over when the fighting will end and what costs the world economy will endure. A strong start to the earnings reporting season for big US companies has helped support stocks.

In other dealings early Monday, the US dollar rose to 158.90 Japanese yen from 158.79 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1757 from $1.1742.

Business

US Energy Chief Says Gas Prices Could Stay Above $3 per Gallon Until Next Year

Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright testifies during a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright testifies during a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
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US Energy Chief Says Gas Prices Could Stay Above $3 per Gallon Until Next Year

Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright testifies during a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright testifies during a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP)

US Energy ‌Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday he believes gas prices have peaked but predicted that they may stay above $3 per gallon until next year.

Gas prices have risen during the US and Israeli war on Iran and Iranian attacks on nearby countries, creating political headwinds for President Donald Trump ahead of the November midterm elections, where his Republican Party will defend slim majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives.

Gas below $3 a gallon "could happen later this year, that might ‌not happen until ‌next year. But prices have likely ‌peaked, and ⁠they'll start going ⁠down," he told CNN’s "State of the Union" program. "Certainly with the resolution of this conflict, you’ll see prices go down."

Trump administration officials have offered differing views on how gas prices may shift. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week predicted gas prices would fall to the $3 per gallon range this summer, ⁠while Wright on Sunday laid out a ‌lengthier likely timeline to reach that ‌price.

Trump himself has said that gas prices may remain ‌elevated until November.

All of them have said gasoline will eventually ‌get cheaper once the Iran war ends. "Under $3 a gallon is pretty tremendous in inflation-adjusted terms," Wright said. "We'll get back there for sure."

The average price for a gallon of regular gas on Sunday ‌was $4.05, according to an estimate by AAA, compared to $3.16 a year ago.

The US and Iran ⁠on ⁠Thursday agreed to a 10-day ceasefire, but Trump on Sunday accused Iran of violating it with attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz this weekend. US officials will arrive in Pakistan for further negotiations on Monday, Trump wrote in a social media post.

"We're offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran," he posted, revisiting a threat he had made prior to the ceasefire.