Prices of Russia ESPO crude for China jump to 7-month high as supplies tighten – Reuters

Prices of Russia ESPO crude for China jump to 7-month high as supplies tighten – Reuters

SINGAPORE, July 5 (Reuters) - Prices of Russia's ESPO Blend crude oil shipped to China have surged to a seven-month high as buyers rush to secure cargoes amid higher Russian demand and after Moscow pledged to cut exports.

Russian light sweet crude loaded at the Pacific port of Kozmino for August-delivery to China traded at a discount of $4 per barrel against ICE Brent futures on a delivered-ex-ship (DES) basis, a significant jump from the $6 discount for July cargoes, traders said.

It is the smallest discount since early December when the Group of Seven (G7) nations imposed a price cap on Russian crude, sending prices into free-fall as refiners and traders shunned the trade in fear of breaching the sanction.