Oil prices rise as EU’s cap on Russian crude comes into effect
5 December 2022, 06:04
The world’s number two oil producer has been able to reroute much, but not all, of its former Europe shipments.
Oil prices have risen in response to an agreement by the G7 group of nations which came into effect on Monday.
Brent crude added around 1% to more than 86 dollars (£68) in Asia trading as the price of Russian oil was capped at 60 dollars (£49) a barrel.
The move is part of increased pressure by the West over the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
It comes after oil producers’ group Opec+ agreed to stick to its policy to reduce production, amid slower global growth and higher interest rates.
The Saudi-led oil cartel and allied producers including Russia have not changed their targets for shipping oil to the global economy amid uncertainty over the impact of new western sanctions against Moscow that could take significant amounts of oil off the market.
It is not yet clear how much Russian oil the two sanctions measures could take off the global market, which would tighten supply and drive up prices.
The world’s number two oil producer has been able to reroute much, but not all, of its former Europe shipments to customers in India, China and Turkey.
