The banks’ stricter lending policies will force refiners and marketers to hold fewer stocks
Letter from the US: Financial contagion and the oil industry – What, me worry?
Banks’ stricter lending policies will force refiners and marketers to hold fewer stocks, putting a squeeze on the oil industry
Just as in the past, the oil industry today seems blind to clear danger signs from outside sources. Oil executives and ministers are either blissfully unaware of or consciously disregarding significant problems, not the least of which is a financial system on the brink of disaster. The officials from oil firms and trading companies were in fine form in this regard at the FT Commodities Global Summit in March. For example, one trader told his audience: “The type of assets that we can bring to the banks’ balance sheets are exactly what the banks need.” As banks watch their assets melt away, the last thing they are interested in is oil trader assets. The industry has yet to acknowledge this cha
Also in this section
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
3 March 2026
The killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in US–Israeli strikes marks the most serious escalation in the region in decades and a bigger potential threat to the oil market than the start of the Russia-Ukraine crisis
2 March 2026
A potential blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following the escalating US-Iran conflict risks disrupting Qatari LNG exports that underpin global gas markets, exposing Asia and other markets to sharp price spikes, cargo shortages and renewed reliance on dirtier fuels
