The Brent crude oil spot price will average $80 per barrel (b) in 4Q23 and $84/b in 2024.

According to price reporting agency Argus Media, Urals crude topped $60 a barrel on Wednesday, climbing above the cap that the Group of Seven set last year in an attempt to restrict revenue to Moscow’s war machine.

The central bank still expects a current account surplus of $47 billion this year and $38 billion in 2024. On Tuesday, it said in a statement that Russia’s worsening trade balance was caused by a decrease in export volumes as well as the decline in prices mainly for energy exports.

The Paks II project was launched in 2014 by an inter-governmental agreement between Hungary and Russia for two VVER-1200 reactors (units 5&6) to be supplied by Rosatom.

About 40% of new global LNG output will come from Qatar by 2029, said Minister of Energy Saad al-Kaabi at the LNG 2023 conference.

South Korea has been expanding its nuclear energy ambitions since President Yoon Suk-yeol assumed power in May 2022 and reversed former President Moon Jae-in's policy of phasing out nuclear power.

The Akkuyu plant, in the southern Mersin province, is Turkey's first. Rosatom is building four VVER-1200 reactors, under a so-called BOO (build-own-operate) model.

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories increased by 5.9 million barrels to 458.1 million barrels.

The Worldwide Rig Count for June was 1,800, up 17 from the 1,783 counted in May 2023, and up 94, from the 1,706 counted in June 2022.

Brent were up 20 cents, or 0.3%, at $76.72 a barrel, WTI gained 19 cents, also 0.3%, to $71.99 a barrel.