Brent Crude Nears Two-Month High as Iran Ships Least Since 2016 - Bloomberg

Brent Crude Nears Two-Month High as Iran Ships Least Since 2016 - Bloomberg:

Oil rose to the highest in almost two months in London as Iranian crude exports tumble, with Asian buyers taking fewer cargoes from the Middle Eastern nation weeks before U.S. sanctions take full effect.

Brent futures gained 0.7 percent. Iran shipped just under 2.1 million barrels a day of crude and condensates in August, the least since March 2016, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. Meanwhile, traders are scrutinizing Saudi Arabia and Russia’s output for signs they will fill potential gaps in supply. Russia kept pumping oil near post-Soviet records last month, while OPEC output rose to its highest this year.

“Underpinning the prevailing bullish sentiment is the increasingly supportive supply outlook,” PVM Oil Associates analyst Stephen Brennock wrote in a report. “Much of this owed to the downswing in Iranian oil shipments.”