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(Zero Hedge)—Remember when, in the immediate aftermath of the Ukraine war, Russian oil immediately traded down to a discount of as much as 30% below spot Brent as the entire western world suddenly found itself locked out of access to the most valuable Russian export (which also meant that China and India were the only natural buyers left) and the price of Russian oil had to reflect the explicit plunge in demand?
Well, that’s no longer the case because in the two years since the start of the Ukraine conflict, it became apparent that Western sanctions were merely a theatrical publicity stunt as the alternative – strict enforcement – would have sent oil prices soaring and that would be unacceptable to a Biden administration terrified of losing the November elections if and when oil and gasoline prices surges.
And as fear of enforcement became a non-issue over time, so did the discount of Russian oil to Brent, which brings us to today, and Goldman’s “chart of the week” which illustrates the collapse in the discount on Russian crude oil close to zero relative to Brent, according to the bank’s estimates using the most recent customs data for December.
According to Goldman, which estimates the effective price of Russian crude paid by its trade partners using detailed customs data on import volumes and import payments for Russia crude, this drop in the price discount was primarily driven by the countries outside of the G7 coalition.
However, the discount has also narrowed for most of the buyers as Russian fleets were becoming more capable of operating under the G7 price cap.
The US Treasury’s recent decision to target Sovcomflot, Russia’s state-owned shipping company and fleet operator, comes against the backdrop of the drop in the effective discount late last year and the twin goals of US policymakers to “limiting Kremlin profits while promoting stable energy markets.”
It is also an admission that western attempts to prevent Putin from generating oil export revenues – critical in keeping the Russian war machine going – were either a failure, or merely a theatrical, virtue signaling sleight-of-hand from the beginning. And while the former is bad, the latter is far more disturbing as it suggests that the west has been willingly enabling Putin to sell oil and fund the war in Ukraine, the same war with Western nations are so vocally against.
Almost as if both Russia and the West are aligned in their (shared) goal of keeping the war in Ukraine going to its inevitable and dire, for Zelenskyy, conclusion; it also almost makes one wonder if the destruction of Ukraine – at the hands of Russia with the implicit enabling by the West – was a pre-planned exercise all along.
Full Goldman note available to pro subscribers in the usual place.
Most Accurate Pollster From 2020 Drops Final Numbers
by JD Rucker
Atlas Intel, which was hands down the most accurate public poll during the 2020 election, just dropped its final poll of the season. It points to landslide victory for Donald Trump. If Kamala Harris is able to win Minnesota and Virginia, two blue states that are in jeopardy of being…
A Kamala Harris Victory Means Green New Deal Lawfare
by Daily Signal
Expect Kamala Harris’ Justice Department to wage Green New Deal lawfare if she is elected president on Nov. 5. As with every last issue pertaining to this election, Harris has not said much about the substance of her climate policy. But a review of her record suggests she’d be amenable…
The Moral and Spiritual Issues That Demand Our Votes
by Harbingers Daily
As a pastor and a preacher, I want to urge all Christians this election season: Get out and vote. I believe it is our duty as citizens of our state and country, but I also believe it’s especially important given the issues represented in this election. Many of these are…
No Matter the Final Vote, This Election’s Biggest Loser May Be the Legacy News Media
by Just The News
In the sultry days of summer 2020 as Donald Trump contemplated a second term, his aides engaged in a quiet conversation with members of the emerging digital media about an audacious idea. The goal was to bypass the traditional news media who monopolized the White House Correspondents Association press room…
Democrats Unveil Dark, Diabolical Plans to Prevent Trump From Retaking White House – Even if He Wins!
by WND
With results from the 2024 presidential election now imminent, Democrats have been vocal in their plans to subvert the will of the American people and prevent former President Donald Trump from retaking the White House if he pulls out a win over his Democratic rival Vice President Kamala Harris. In…
Trump Doesn’t Rule Out Banning Certain Vaccines if He Wins Election
by The Epoch Times
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Trump, Republicans Pin Hopes on Record Early Voting in North Carolina
by Jeff Louderback, The Epoch Times
(The Epoch Times)—In his final North Carolina rally of the 2024 campaign, former President Donald Trump predicted he would win the state where he prevailed in 2016 and 2020. “North Carolina’s reliable for me,” Trump said at Dorton Arena in Raleigh, the first of four stops on Election Day Eve….
If Godly People Don’t Vote, Godless People Will: The Christian Case for Voting
by The Blaze
Do Christians have a spiritual responsibility to vote? Allie Beth Stuckey of “Relatable” and the senior pastor of Lakepointe Church, Josh Howerton, believe the answer to that question is a resounding “yes.” “I’ll gently venture out on a limb,” Howerton tells Stuckey. “I think Christians have a spiritual responsibility to…
Here’s Proof the FBI Protected Biden in 2020, and Why Congress is More Important Than the White House
by PJ Media
You won’t find it reported on the A-section pages of the New York Times or the Washington Post even though it is quite likely the most significant report produced by any investigative committee in Congress since the Church Committee in 1976. For those who need a refresher, the investigative committee…
The Media Made Sure This Election Was Never Going to Be Free or Fair
by The Federalist
The corrupt news media lied to voters on behalf of Democrats over and over ensuring an unfair election. How can we ever return to normal? It’s truly awe-inspiring to watch the news media berate Republicans, down to the very end, over the “free and fair” election we’re most certainly not…
“It’s Not Going to Be Close”: Mark Halperin Says One Key Voter Group Will Decide the Election
by Harold Hutchison, Daily Caller News Foundation
(DCNF)—Journalist Mark Halperin said on Monday that the turnout of women would decide the presidential election between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump leads Harris by 0.1% in a head-to-head matchup, according to the RealClearPolling average of polls from Oct. 11 to Nov. 3, with Trump’s…
It Was the Night Before the Election, and Everyone Was Freaking Out
by Michael Snyder
(End of the American Dream)—I have never seen so much doubt, worry, anxiety, fear and panic as we approach a presidential election. All over the country, people are freaking out right now. Democrats are freaking out because the early voting numbers are so dramatically different from 2020. Republicans are freaking…
I find that to be hysterical. If the new BRICS finds internal markets for all their energy, BRICS and OPEC are going to cut off the G-7 from all it’s energy including Uranium, and they want to go all the way up to the G-20. They have already stated this. The G-7 won’t be able to buy oil at any price. And according to Biden, that’s fine because we have windmills. Really. That’s our energy policy; we have windmills.
What a mess Trump is going to inherit.