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Oil Prices Rise 3% as US and Iran Extend Talks into Next Week

FILE PHOTO: A flame burning natural gas is seen at an heavy-crude treatment plant operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA, in the oil rich Orinoco belt, near Cabrutica at the state of Anzoategui April 16, 2015. Picture taken on April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A flame burning natural gas is seen at an heavy-crude treatment plant operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA, in the oil rich Orinoco belt, near Cabrutica at the state of Anzoategui April 16, 2015. Picture taken on April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
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Oil Prices Rise 3% as US and Iran Extend Talks into Next Week

FILE PHOTO: A flame burning natural gas is seen at an heavy-crude treatment plant operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA, in the oil rich Orinoco belt, near Cabrutica at the state of Anzoategui April 16, 2015. Picture taken on April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A flame burning natural gas is seen at an heavy-crude treatment plant operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA, in the oil rich Orinoco belt, near Cabrutica at the state of Anzoategui April 16, 2015. Picture taken on April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo

Oil prices rose around 3% on Friday as traders remained on alert for potential supply disruptions after the United States and Iran extended nuclear talks.

Brent crude futures advanced by $2.01, or 2.8%, to $72.76 a barrel by 1310 GMT while US West Texas Intermediate crude was up $2.11, or 3.2%, at $67.32.

"Uncertainty prevails, fear is pushing prices higher today," said Tamas Varga, an oil analyst at brokerage PVM. "It is completely driven by the outcome of the Iranian nuclear talks and possible military action the US might take against Iran."

For the week, Brent and WTI were both set to finish with a gain of 1.4%, Reuters reported.

The United States and Iran held indirect talks in Geneva on Thursday after US President Donald Trump ordered a military buildup in the region.

Oil prices gained more than a dollar a barrel during the talks on media reports indicating that discussions had stalled over US insistence on zero enrichment of uranium by Iran. However, prices eased after the Omani mediator said the two sides had made progress in the talks.

They plan to resume negotiations with technical-level discussions scheduled next week in Vienna, Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi said on X.

"We think the latest round of talks offers some hope on chances of a peaceful resolution, but military strikes are in no way out of the equation," said DBS analyst Suvro Sarkar.

Trump said on February 19 that Iran must make a deal over its nuclear programme within 10 to 15 days or "really bad things" will happen.

Geopolitical risk premiums of $8 to $10 a barrel have built in oil prices on fears that a conflict will disrupt Middle East supply through the Strait of Hormuz, where about 20% of global oil supply passes, Sarkar said.

Producer group OPEC+ is also likely to consider raising oil output by 137,000 barrels per day for April at its March 1 meeting, sources said, after suspending production increases in the first quarter.

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Business

China Temporarily Bans Helium Exports as US-Iran Tensions Flare Again

Ships and containers at a Chinese port (Reuters)
Ships and containers at a Chinese port (Reuters)
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China Temporarily Bans Helium Exports as US-Iran Tensions Flare Again

Ships and containers at a Chinese port (Reuters)
Ships and containers at a Chinese port (Reuters)

China announced on Friday a temporary export ban on helium, effective immediately, as resumption of military conflict in the Middle East threatens to trigger new shortages of the gas critical for chip manufacturing.

Earlier this year, the US-Israeli war on Iran led to helium shortages, disrupting companies globally, including in China, where the AI industry increasingly relies on domestic chips for training and ⁠running AI models. Helium is essential for heat management in semiconductor production.

The helium ban is the latest example of Beijing seeking to prevent domestic shortages of critical materials by curbing exports. It has previously imposed similar measures on fuel, fertilizers and sulfuric acid.

China is also looking to boost domestic chip manufacturing capacity and reduce the industry's dependence on cutting-edge Nvidia semiconductors that fall under US export controls.

China is heavily ⁠dependent on overseas helium despite efforts to expand domestic production.

Still, the export ban could squeeze global supply further because Chinese companies have increasingly acted as intermediaries, importing Russian helium and re-exporting some volumes to overseas markets, including Europe.

According to Reuters, analysts ⁠estimate China imports around 85% or more of its helium requirements. Qatar accounts for a major share of global helium output and has supplied more than half ⁠of China's imports in recent years.

Helium is extracted from natural gas fields with unusually high helium concentrations and cannot be quickly manufactured from ⁠other industrial processes.

In chipmaking, it is used for wafer cooling, plasma etching, chemical vapor deposition, atomic layer deposition, lithography support and leak detection.

Business

IEA Says Global Oil Demand Picks Up Despite War Fears

FILE PHOTO: A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo
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IEA Says Global Oil Demand Picks Up Despite War Fears

FILE PHOTO: A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo

The International Energy Agency said Friday that "a recovery" in global oil demand had started as supplies tentatively start moving through the strategic Strait of Hormuz again and prices ease.

"A recovery in world oil demand is underway, with consumption set to rise from its May nadir," AFP quoted the IEA's monthly report as saying.

The agency had in June predicted a fall in demand of 1.1 million barrels a day (mbd) through 2026 because of the Middle East war, which strangled traffic through the strait. It now expects a one million barrel a day fall.

"Global oil supply rebounded by a sharp 4.1 mbd to 98.8 mbd in June, as a resumption of flows through the Strait of Hormuz underpinned a partial recovery in Gulf production. World output was nevertheless some 9.4 mb/d below pre-war levels," it said.

"Total Gulf oil exports, including volumes bypassing the Strait, surged by 6.5 mbd in June, to 16.1 mbd - a big jump but still well below the 24 mbd average before the war started."

According to the IEA, world supply improved to 102.6 mbd in June and would continue to get better if there was "a swift de-escalation of renewed hostilities".

"If transit volumes improve, oil supply will expand by 7.5 mbd next year," the agency added.

The agency said world oil reserves increased for the first time since the US-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28 set off the war.

It added that stocks in the richest nations had fallen as their oil imports remained low despite the rise in volumes being transported by sea.

While oil prices fell dramatically in June, fresh fighting between US and Iranian forces this week "clouds the outlook", the IEA said.

"Renewed exchanges of fire in the Gulf this week highlight the risks of not reaching a lasting peace agreement, which is a must for the normalization in oil markets," it commented.

Business

Humain, Cohere Launch Strategic Partnership to Expand AI Infrastructure in Saudi Arabia

Logo of the Saudi company Humain (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Logo of the Saudi company Humain (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Humain, Cohere Launch Strategic Partnership to Expand AI Infrastructure in Saudi Arabia

Logo of the Saudi company Humain (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Logo of the Saudi company Humain (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Humain, the company building an integrated artificial intelligence ecosystem, and Canadian sovereign AI company Cohere have announced a strategic partnership to develop AI computing infrastructure and support the development of sovereign AI models and enterprise AI solutions in Saudi Arabia.

The agreement was announced during Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to the Kingdom, marking Cohere’s first international expansion outside North America.

Under the partnership, Humain will allocate at least 50 megawatts of AI-dedicated computing capacity to support the next generation of foundation models being developed by Cohere.

The capacity may be expanded over the next five years in line with growing demand, with the infrastructure scheduled to become operational in the fourth quarter of 2027.

The collaboration also includes the development of customized AI solutions for enterprises, sovereign Arabic-language models, and specialized models for various economic sectors, supporting the secure adoption of AI applications across the Kingdom.

Humain Chief Executive Officer Tareq Amin said access to computing capacity will be the defining factor in the future of artificial intelligence.

He added that Cohere’s decision to establish its first large-scale international computing deployment in Saudi Arabia reflects the strength of the infrastructure Humain is developing to support advanced AI research and foundation models.

For his part, Aidan Gomez, Cohere’s co-founder and chief executive officer, said developing new generations of AI models requires sustained access to high-performance computing.

He added that the partnership with Humain provides the infrastructure and flexibility needed to support the company’s long-term strategy, while also enabling collaboration on sovereign AI models and initiatives that will benefit both Saudi Arabia and global markets.

The partnership aims to combine Humain’s AI infrastructure with Cohere’s expertise in developing large language models, strengthening regional AI computing capabilities and creating a scalable platform to meet growing demand for enterprise AI solutions.

It also seeks to enable organizations to deploy secure, production-ready AI applications tailored to business needs.