Brent crude eases after Iraq signs deal to export oil through Turkey

The news: Oil prices eased on Wednesday, paring back Tuesday’s sharp gains after Iraqi and Kurdish authorities reached an agreement to resume exports via Turkey’s Ceyhan port, aiming to provide modest relief to supplies.

Brent crude fell 1.29% to USD102 at 2:33pm AEDT.

The context: Iraq’s oil minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani said oil flows from Ceyhan will commence on Wednesday local time, with an estimated flow of 100,000 barrels per day through the port.

Iraq’s southern oilfields production has plunged 70% to 1.3 million barrels per day as Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which accounted for 20% of global oil maritime passage.

This was in addition to Iranian security chief Ali Larijani who was confirmed dead following an Israeli attack overnight.