Analysts say extra Russian fuel unlikely to ease market stress
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators called President Donald Trump’s plan to allow Russian diesel imports into the United States illegal and contrary to a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The lawmakers’ objection came the same day Trump said Sunday on Truth Social that Moscow and Kyiv had agreed to an energy ceasefire halting strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure. Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far rebuffed proposals for such a ceasefire, the Journal reported, and the Kremlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reiterated that he remains open to stopping airstrikes against Russian refineries if Moscow halts its bombing of Ukraine’s energy grid, but has rebuffed Trump’s pressure to unilaterally cease strikes.
“A bipartisan group of senators called Trump’s export plan illegal and contrary to a 2022 law that banned Russian energy imports,” the Journal’s Marcus Walker and Robbie Gramer wrote in the newspaper’s Logistics Report newsletter. “They said the administration failed to consult with Congress or submit the justification required under the 2022 law barring Russian energy imports to the U.S.”
The senators’ statement adds a bipartisan dimension to the question of whether to allow Russian diesel back into the U.S. market. The senators said the administration failed to consult Congress and to submit the justification the 2022 law requires.
Analysts told the Journal that additional Russian diesel would be unlikely to relieve stress in global fuel markets. The Iran war’s disruption to the Strait of Hormuz has throttled shipments from the Middle East, they said, limiting the routes by which surplus Russian product could substitute for other supplies.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka said separately: “Typically we would see a softening toward the end of this month following China’s weeklong national holiday…but this year looks a little bit different, with an active typhoon season impacting normal vessel scheduling and a lot of cargo still sitting on the docks.”
In other items from the same WSJ Logistics Report:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said as of Oct. 2 it had received approximately $136 billion in tariff refund requests and sent $126 billion to the Treasury Department for payment, after the Supreme Court in February struck down Trump’s global tariffs. More than 286,000 importers requested refunds, according to a September court filing.
Companies from Macy’s to Levi Strauss have told investors they plan to spend portions of the multimillion-dollar refunds on marketing as the holiday shopping season approaches, the Journal’s Patrick Coffee reported.
The average spot rate to ship a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Los Angeles fell 3% in the week ended Oct. 8, according to Drewry’s World Container Index.
Chinese automaker Geely announced plans to begin selling vehicles to Canadian customers next year, the Journal’s Ryan Felton reported. Geely is among the world’s largest carmakers by sales and has begun establishing a retail and service network in Canada.
Earlier this year, Canada significantly lowered its tariff rate on up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles, the Journal reported. The United States has effectively kept out Chinese EVs through high tariffs and a ban on some internet-connected software; Congress has been debating legislation aimed at prohibiting Chinese automakers from selling or manufacturing vehicles in America.
The WSJ Logistics Report is edited by Mark R. Long.