REUTERS - U.S. crude futures last traded at $70.11 per barrel, down 0.9 percent from Monday’s settlement price. Global benchmark Brent crude futures stood at $75.64 per barrel, down 0.7 percent, having risen as high as $76.34 on Monday.

BLOOMBERG - The world’s biggest oil buyer imported 9.64 million barrels a day in April, according to data released by Beijing-based General Administration of Customs on Tuesday. That’s about 4 percent higher than March and beat a previous record of 9.61 million barrels per day reached in January. For the month of April, total purchases were 39.46 million metric tons.

REUTERS - Saudi Arabia’s first quarter budget deficit stood at 34.3 billion Saudi riyals ($9.15 billion), around 18 percent of the total gap forecast for 2018, the finance ministry said

REUTERS - Iraq’s state-run North Oil Company signed an agreement with BP on Monday to triple output from the Kirkuk fields in the north of the country, Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said.

SHELL - Royal Dutch Shell plc (“Shell”) announces an agreement to sell its entire stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (“Canadian Natural”)

BAKER HUGHES A GE - The worldwide rig count for April 2018 was 2,087, down 92 from the 2,179 counted in March 2018, and up 170 from the 1,917 counted in April 2017.

REUTERS - Brent crude oil futures were at $75.71 per barrel, up 84 cents, or 1.12 percent from their last close at 0416 GMT after climbing to $75.89 a barrel earlier in the session, its highest since November 2014. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 0.95 percent to trade at $70.39 per barrel, up 66 cents from their last settlement.

OGJ - “I frankly don’t see it as a strategy,” Mitrova admitted. “When we look at Russia’s economy, energy is an important part. Hydrocarbons still represent the biggest share of its federal budget, but their share has dropped from 50% to 40%. There is no consistent long-term plan, and many decisions are driven by short-term adaptations. There is no clear consensus.”

SHANA - Iranian Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh said Tehran preferred "reasonable" price for crude oil in a bid to avoid market instability.

SHANA - The CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) said the country’s crude oil export stood at average 2.170 million barrels per day (mb/d) over the course of the previous Iranian calendar year of 1396 which ended on March 20.

WBG - For Nigeria to tap its spatial drivers of development, policymakers may want to focus on investments that reinforce clusters and economies of scale; optimize the connectivity between rural areas and the major urban markets; and address structural and land management issues in major urban nodes and along major growth corridors to remove or alleviate barriers that undermine the growth potential.

REUTERS - Qatar is taking a nearly 19 percent stake in Rosneft (ROSN.MM), rescuing the Russian oil major from its stalled deal to sell a major stake to China’s CEFC.

U.S. DOE - Energy storage will play an increasingly critical role in the resilient grid of the future. Storage systems provide important services, including improving grid stability, providing backup power, and allowing for greater integration of renewable resources. Today’s dominant storage options have limitations that inhibit their use as long-duration solutions, particularly their high cost.

U.S. DOL - Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 164,000 in April, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, manufacturing, health care, and mining.

BAKER HUGHES A GE - U.S. Rig Count is up 11 rigs from last week to 1,032, with oil rigs up 9 to 834, gas rigs up 1 to 196, and miscellaneous rigs up 1 to 2. Canada Rig Count is up 1 rig from last week to 86, with oil rigs up 4 to 37 and gas rigs down 3 to 49.