Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said earlier that the country's oil companies were seeking new markets, finding new buyers and increasing exports to the Asia-Pacific region amid Western anti-Russian sanctions.
Russia is expected to boost exports of naphtha - a key ingredient for making petrochemicals such as plastics and textile fibers - to Singapore in May to their highest level this year.
“The higher imports reflect blending demand for naphtha ahead of peak gasoline demand season in summer," Reuters cited an unnamed Singapore-based petrochemical trader as saying.
For his part, Armaan Ashraf, global head of natural gas liquids at FGE consultancy, suggested that Russian refineries would continue to recover from Ukrainian drone attacks in the coming weeks - a key factor in accelerating production.
"The refinery [attack] impact wanes off through May and June, which is why we may expect higher exports from Russia," Ashraf pointed out.
FGE expects Singapore to import a record 500,000 tons of Russian naphtha in May, while LSEG Research puts the figure at 415,000. Overall, Russian naphtha exports to Asia are estimated to reach 1.4-1.5 million tons in June.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) earlier noted that Russian oil exports are growing despite Western sanctions slapped on Russia shortly after the beginning of the special military operation. The IMF attributed the growth to an expanding tanker fleet transporting Russian crude and the fact that the country has introduced its own insurance for maritime oil shipments.
Last year, President Vladimir Putin announced that the Russian economy had recovered from Western sanctions.
"In general, we can say that the restoration of the national economy is complete. We have withstood absolutely unprecedented external pressure, the onslaught of sanctions by some ruling elites in the so-called Western bloc, some ruling elites in certain countries that we call unfriendly," Putin underscored.
He added that Russia’s oil and gas revenues in July-August 2023 had recovered to the level of 2022, while non-oil and gas revenues had significantly exceeded the previous year's figures.
Since the beginning of the special military operation, Western countries have imposed 11 packages of sanctions affecting various sectors of the Russian economy.
Oil falls on prospect of higher-for-longer US rates, stronger dollar
Oil prices fell by nearly $1 a barrel on Friday as comments from U.S. central bank officials indicated higher-for-longer interest rates, which could hinder demand from the world's largest crude consumers.
Brent crude futures settled at $82.79 a barrel, down $1.09, or 1.3%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $78.26 a barrel, down $1.00, or 1.3%.
For the week, Brent logged a 0.2% loss, while WTI recorded a rise of 0.2%.
Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan on Friday said it was unclear whether monetary policy was tight enough to bring down inflation to the U.S. central bank's 2% goal.
Higher interest rates typically slow economic activity and weaken oil demand. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic also said that he thought inflation was likely to slow under current monetary policy, enabling the central bank to begin reducing its policy rate in 2024 - though perhaps by only a quarter of a percentage point and not until the final months of the year.
"The two Fed speakers certainly seemed to put the kibosh on the prospect of rate cuts," said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital.
The U.S. dollar strengthened after the Fed officials' comments, making greenback-denominated commodities more expensive for buyers using other currencies. Higher-for-longer U.S. interest rates could also dampen demand.
Oil prices were also under pressure from rising U.S. fuel inventories approaching the typically robust summer driving season, said Jim Ritterbusch of Ritterbusch and Associates.
"Given the price decline of the past month and the weaker-than-expected demand trends for U.S. gasoline and diesel, some bearish demand adjustment would appear likely," Ritterbusch said.
Next week, U.S. inflation data could influence Fed decisions on rates.
Oil drew little support from the U.S. oil rig count, which is an indicator of future supply, despite energy services firm Baker Hughes data showing the number of oil rigs fell by three to 496 this week, their lowest since November.
Money managers, meanwhile, cut their net long U.S. crude futures and options positions in the week to May 7 by 56,517 contracts to 82,697, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission said.
Data on Thursday showing China imported more oil in April than the same month last year also helped keep oil prices from moving lower. China's exports and imports returned to growth in April after contracting the previous month.
The European Central Bank, meanwhile, looks increasingly likely to start cutting rates in June.
In Europe, a Ukrainian drone attack set an oil refinery in Russia's Kaluga region on fire, RIA state news agency reported on Friday, the latest salvo from Kyiv in what has become a series of tit-for-tat attacks on energy infrastructure.
Conflict in the Middle East also continues after Israeli forces bombarded areas of the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Thursday, according to Palestinian residents, after a lack of progress in the latest round of negotiations to halt hostilities in Gaza.
Exxon hit with $725.5 million verdict over mechanic's leukemia diagnosis
A Pennsylvania jury ordered ExxonMobil(XOM.N) to pay $725.5 million to a former mechanic who claimed toxic chemicals in the company’s gasoline and solvents caused his cancer, according to attorneys for the plaintiff.
The 10-2 verdict came on Thursday, attorneys said, after a trial in a state court in Philadelphia, where former mechanic Paul Gill alleged he was exposed to benzene in ExxonMobil products while working at a gas station between 1975 and 1980.
Following the trial that lasted just over a week, the jury found Exxon liable for negligently failing to warn about the health risks of benzene, which the U.S. Environmental Protect Agency (EPA) has classified as a known carcinogen. The entire verdict was in compensatory damages, according to Gill's attorneys.
An Exxon spokesperson called the verdict “irrational” and said the company would ask the court to reverse it, and that it planned to “exhaust all available appeals.”
The 67-year-old former mechanic said in his 2020 lawsuit that he used petroleum products to clean car parts with his bare hands, which exposed him to benzene through direct skin contact and inhalation.
He was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a type of blood cancer, in 2019. "This verdict is important because it’s a finding that their gasoline causes cancer," said Patrick Wigle, an attorney for Gill, in a statement. "ExxonMobil has known for decades that benzene causes cancer, yet they resisted warning the public and taking basic precautions to warn the public and limit exposure."
Benzene is widely used in the United States in motor fuels, as a solvent for resins and plastics, and for other industrial purposes.
The EPA, which limits the amount of benzene that is acceptable in fuels, says it also can be found in emissions from burning coal and oil, from car exhaust and from evaporation at gas stations, among other things.
