Europe is weaning itself off Russian oil and gas in steps. The next phase, targeting oil products such as diesel and jet fuel, could bring fresh snags for buyers and fat profits for refiners.
This weekend, the European Union stops importing petroleum products from Russia. This follows a ban on shipments of crude oil that came in early December, and before that, August's coal embargo.
Group of Seven Agrees to Expand Sanctions on Russian Oil Industry
The U.S. and its allies agreed to cap the sales price of premium Russian petroleum products such as diesel at $100 a barrel and limit low-value ones such as fuel oil to $45 a barrel, expanding their sanctions on Russia's oil industry.
Just as with the $60 a barrel price cap on Russian crude that the West imposed last year, the agreement will bar Western firms from handling seaborne cargoes of Russian oil products unless they are sold below the set prices. The sanctions aim to keep Russian oil available on global markets to keep prices steady, while also reducing the Kremlin's revenue in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
The World's Biggest Planes Are Finding Their Way Back Into the Skies
The world's biggest passenger airliners-many of which had been earmarked for the scrapyard-are being brought back into service as carriers rush to restore long-haul air travel.
Aircraft lessors said airlines are clamoring for their once-parked fleets of big jets, which typically each ferry hundreds of passengers on long-distance routes. The demand is limiting availability and pushing up the prices of rentals.
Ukraine Warns Russia Is Planning Major Offensive as Kyiv Shakes Up Military Leadership
DNIPRO, Ukraine-Ukraine warned that Russia was completing preparations for a major new offensive this month as Kyiv signaled a reshuffle in its military leadership amid a corruption scandal that has rocked the Defense Ministry.
Serhiy Haidai, the governor of the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine, said Russia was continuing to bolster its offensive capacity and bring in troops to front line positions while decreasing its rate of fire in certain areas to save ammunition for the coming advance.
Israeli Military Kills Five Militants Near Jericho as Violence Spreads
Tel Aviv-Israeli forces said they killed five Palestinian militants during an operation targeting Hamas members in the Aqbat Jabr refugee camp near Jericho, the second such deadly raid in little over a week as violence escalates in the occupied West Bank.
Israel's military said it raided the camp to arrest two Palestinian suspects who last month attempted to carry out a shooting attack at a nearby restaurant frequented by Jewish Israelis, but their weapons malfunctioned and they fled. Israel's military said they were hiding out in the refugee camp with the help of family and locals, and had continued to declare their intentions to carry out an attack.
Moscow, Tehran Advance Plans for Iranian-Designed Drone Facility in Russia
Moscow and Tehran are moving ahead with plans to build a new factory in Russia that could make at least 6,000 Iranian-designed drones for the war in Ukraine, the latest sign of deepening cooperation between the two nations, said officials from a country aligned with the U.S.
As part of their emerging military alliance, the officials said, a high-level Iranian delegation flew to Russia in early January to visit the planned site for the factory and hammer out details to get the project up-and-running. The two countries are aiming to build a faster drone that could pose new challenges for Ukrainian air defenses, the officials said.
GLOBAL NEWS
The stock-market rally survived a confusing week. Here's what comes next.
Despite a Friday stumble, stocks ended a turbulent week with another round of solid gains, keeping 2023's young but robust stock-market rally very much alive.
But a cloud of confusion hangs over the market, and it will eventually need to be resolved, strategists said.
Upbeat Economic Data Keep Investors on Edge About Fed
The U.S. labor market remains incredibly strong. Investors can't decide if that is a good or bad thing.
At first glance, Friday's jobs report seemed to have very little for money managers to dislike. The U.S. economy added a whopping 517,000 jobs in January, while the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level since 1969, according to Labor Department data.
Banks Borrow Unsecured Cash at Record Clip While Deposits Flee
Banks were chasing away deposits during the depths of the pandemic. Now, some are paying higher rates to shore up cash.
Borrowing in the federal-funds market hit $120 billion on Jan. 27, the highest one-day total in Federal Reserve data going back to 2016. Activity in fed funds-used by banks and government-backed lenders to exchange cash reserves parked at the Fed-surged throughout the past year when the central bank raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades.
U.S. Weighs Sanctions for Chinese Companies Over Iran Surveillance Buildup
The U.S. is considering new sanctions on Chinese surveillance companies over sales to Iran's security forces, officials familiar with the deliberations said, as Iranian authorities increasingly rely on the technology to crack down on protests.
U.S. authorities are in advanced discussions on the sanctions, according to the officials, and have zeroed in on Tiandy Technologies Co., a surveillance-equipment maker based in the eastern Chinese city of Tianjin whose products have been sold to units of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a hard-line paramilitary group.
Russia Sanctions Challenge Tight U.S. Diesel Market
U.S. fuel markets held steady in December after Western sanctions on Russian crude reshuffled global oil shipments. New restrictions that take effect Sunday could prove more complicated.
The measures, which target most of Russia's refined petroleum products, threaten to take supplies off the market as the country looks for new trading partners. Any confusion could buoy prices for diesel and other fuels that have remained stubbornly high since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine last year.
China Rebukes U.S. for Taking Down Its Balloon
BEIJING-China's vice foreign minister lodged strong criticism of the U.S. decision to shoot down a suspected surveillance balloon over the weekend, calling it an indiscriminate use of force that would further damage U.S.-China relations.
Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng delivered the rebuke to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on Sunday, according to a statement published Monday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The statement reiterated China's position that the balloon was an unmanned civilian aircraft that had drifted off course.
U.S. Weighs Sanctions for Chinese Companies Over Iran Surveillance Buildup
The U.S. is considering new sanctions on Chinese surveillance companies over sales to Iran's security forces, officials familiar with the deliberations said, as Iranian authorities increasingly rely on the technology to crack down on protests.
U.S. authorities are in advanced discussions on the sanctions, according to the officials, and have zeroed in on Tiandy Technologies Co., a surveillance-equipment maker based in the eastern Chinese city of Tianjin whose products have been sold to units of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a hard-line paramilitary group.
Billionaire Charles Koch-Backed Group Will Push GOP to Move Past Donald Trump
WASHINGTON-A group funded by billionaire Charles Koch will work to support a Republican presidential nominee other than Donald Trump, concluding in a strategy memo that "we need to turn the page on the past."
The organization, Americans for Prosperity, has stayed out of the last two presidential cycles but has concluded it needs to engage now as Mr. Trump mounts his third consecutive White House run. The memo released Sunday doesn't mention the former president by name but is unambiguous in its purpose.
Classified-Documents Probe Highlights Biden Family's Deep Ties to Penn
The discovery of classified documents from Joe Biden's vice presidency at a foreign-relations think tank might have surprised many in the country. The fact that the think tank was run by the University of Pennsylvania and bore the president's name shouldn't have.
For decades, the Ivy League school and the Biden family, across generations, have fostered close relations to their mutual benefit. Those benefits extend beyond the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, where the documents were discovered in November.
Biden Prepares for State of the Union Speech as China Tensions, Job Gains Take Center Stage
WASHINGTON-President Biden will give the State of the Union address before a newly divided Congress on Tuesday, hoping to build off positive economic signs but facing fresh tensions with China and the lingering war in Ukraine.
Following the speech, Mr. Biden will travel on Wednesday to Wisconsin, a 2024 presidential battleground, and tout union jobs during a visit to Madison. On Thursday he is scheduled to visit Florida-the home of two potential 2024 GOP rivals, former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis-to highlight plans to strengthen Social Security and Medicare and reduce healthcare costs, the White House said. On Friday he will discuss his economic agenda with the nation's governors and meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Hong Kong Opposition in Court as Landmark National-Security Trial Opens
HONG KONG-Sixteen pro-democracy figures went on trial Monday in a landmark case in Hong Kong's crackdown on political dissent, drawing global scrutiny as the city's government launches a marketing blitz to restore the financial hub's allure to global business and tourists.
(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires
02-06-23 0623ET
