On the Situation in the Global Oil Market

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Oil is trading at $66 per barrel.

Brent crude oil (the benchmark North Sea oil) is trading on Friday at $65.90 per barrel, with quotes falling by 0.3%.

The Russian Urals blend (a mixture of heavy Urals-Volga and light West Siberian Siberian Light oil) is valued at $56 per barrel.

It is worth noting that Urals oil traditionally trades at a discount to Brent (the difference is usually 4-8 USD per barrel), which is due to its higher sulfur content, transportation, and sanctions-related costs.

The main buyers of Urals oil are Asian countries.

Exchange trading of Urals oil takes place on the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX).

Overview provided by Yulia Grishchenko, member of the Expert Council on Listing of the Moscow Exchange, Ph.D. in Economics, Head of the Department of Financial and Investment Management at the Faculty of "Higher School of Management" of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.