Overview
- Oil futures fell for a second session after President Trump paused U.S. naval escorts through the Strait of Hormuz, with Brent near $108 a barrel and WTI near $100.
- Russia’s tax-basis oil price averaged $94.87 a barrel in April, the highest since September 2014, lifting monthly budget revenue tied to crude.
- Tanker tracking shows four-week crude shipments from Russian ports reached 3.66 million barrels a day through May 3, driving a four-week average export value of about $2.42 billion a week, the most since early 2022.
- The Finance Ministry said it will buy 110 billion rubles of foreign currency and gold for the National Wealth Fund in May, reviving purchases under a rule that saves extra oil income when prices sit above $59 a barrel.
- Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War say fuel subsidies and refinery repair costs, together with damage from Ukrainian strikes on oil sites, are limiting how much of the price boost reaches Russia’s budget.