China Halts October Fuel Exports; Brent Crude Tops $100 a Barrel

Brent crude rose above $100 a barrel on Oct. 1 after Chinese refiners suspended fuel exports for October, Reuters reported. December-expiry Brent traded 2.2% higher at $100.15, while November WTI gained 1.5% to $91.74. Beijing began a week-long national holiday without issuing export permits to major refiners, allowing shipments only to Hong Kong and Macau. PetroChina scrapped several October gasoline and jet fuel cargo commitments. State data cited by Kpler put commercial gasoil and diesel inventories about 20 million barrels below the threshold for export permitting, with gasoline roughly 9 million barrels short. The move follows President Xi Jinping's Washington trip, where President Donald Trump pressed for action on global fuel supplies. The U.S. has urged Germany and France to release emergency diesel stocks. The administration also solicited the final 40-million-barrel tranche of a 172-million-barrel SPR release. U.S. diesel prices hit a record roughly $6.50 a gallon.