Mayhem Reigns in Oil Markets as Traders Avoid Russian Supply
- Invasion of Ukraine has made the country a commercial outcast
- Impact is causing price dislocations, reshaping energy flows
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Global oil markets are in a state of flux unlike anything traders say they’ve seen in recent years as they grapple with the sudden disappearance of saleable products from the world’s second-biggest exporter.
The invasion of Ukraine has rapidly made Russia a commercial outcast, resulting in most buyers and shippers avoiding cargoes of its crude, diesel, heavy naphtha and vacuum gasoil. That’s causing abrupt changes in market structures, price dislocations and violent swings in freight rates.