Britain is targeting Russia's largest oil companies and the country's "shadow fleet" of oil tankers in a bid to cut off Vladimir Putin's ability to fund the war in Ukraine. The UK government is also pursuing a major Indian oil refinery and four Chinese oil terminals in a package of 90 new sanctions.

The world oil market faces an even bigger surplus next year of as much as 4 million barrels per day as OPEC+ producers and rivals lift output and demand remains sluggish, the International Energy Agency predicted on Tuesday.

Oil prices slumped to their lowest in five months on Tuesday on market fears of oversupply in the run up to end of the year and first quarter of 2026.

Commercial crude stocks are seen down by 1.1 million barrels at 419.2 million barrels in the week ended Oct. 10, according to the average estimate of eight analysts and traders. Six expect a drop and two predict an increase, with estimates ranging from a 3.4 million barrel rise to a 3.4 million barrel decline.

A long-anticipated oil surplus is finally starting to emerge and is likely to depress prices, some of the world’s top commodity traders said.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures opened at $58.90 per barrel (bbl) on October 13, 2025. Brent crude opened at $62.73 per barrel. Both benchmarks remain closely watched gauges of global energy supply and demand.

The prospect of a contango is casting a shadow over oil markets, with the entire 2026 WTI futures curve now trading below $60 per barrel

The crypto market turned red on Oct. 14 after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to halt cooking oil imports from China, calling Beijing’s trade behavior toward American soybean farmers an “Economically Hostile Act.” Within an hour of Trump's post, Bitcoin (BTC) dropped by 2.4% to around $112,861, while Ether (ETH) fell 3.3% to $4,108.

Oil prices steadied on Wednesday after closing at five-month lows in the previous session, as investors weighed the International Energy Agency's prediction of a supply surplus in 2026 and trade tensions between the U.