Russia conducted a missile strike on Thursday near the eastern Ukrainian city of Kupiansk, resulting in the deaths of at least 51 people, including a child. This attack is considered one of the deadliest against civilians since the onset of the war.
The missile strike, carried out by Moscow’s forces, targeted a cafe and a shop in the village of Hroza, situated in the Kharkiv region. These establishments had local residents inside at the time of the attack.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov expressed the urgent need for more defense systems in Kyiv to protect the country from acts of terror. There are concerns about a potential reduction in military aid from Western allies, making it crucial for Ukraine to bolster its defense capabilities.
The United Nations’ humanitarian coordinator in Ukraine conveyed that the images emerging from the scene of the missile strike are profoundly distressing, highlighting the devastating impact on civilians in the region.
Russia Also Attacks Ukrainian Grain Storage
Russian drones attacked port infrastructure in Ukraine’s Odesa region, damaging a grain silo near the Danube River. A Turkish-flagged general cargo ship hit a mine yesterday in the Black Sea off the coast of Romania and sustained minor damage.
Russia resumes seaborne diesel exports with new restrictions after recent ban. Russia decided to allow the resumption of seaborne exports of diesel fuel, just weeks after imposing a ban that had significant global market repercussions. The ban had been instituted in response to domestic fuel cost increases that contributed to inflation concerns ahead of Russia’s presidential elections in March. Link for details via Bloomberg.
Under the updated regulations, diesel shipments can restart, provided that the fuel is delivered to Russian ports via pipelines, particularly to the western ports that account for most exported volumes. This move is expected to provide relief to importers, as Russia is a major seaborne exporter of diesel-type fuels.
The new rules are set to free up approximately 90% of the pre-ban seaborne export volumes, estimated at around 630,000 barrels per day. However, the regulations also stipulate that producers must retain at least 50% of their diesel output within the country, ensuring domestic supply.
Impacts: The lifting of the ban caused key metrics for diesel traders to decline temporarily, with the fuel’s premium over crude oil falling before recovering. The prompt timespread, which provides insights into market tightness and supply urgency, also saw fluctuations. Additionally, exporters who do not produce their own diesel but purchase volumes from the domestic market will now face high export duties, set at 50,000 rubles (approximately $500) per ton, close to the current price of Russian inter-seasonal diesel on the SPIMEX commodity exchange.
The Russian government is also fully restoring subsidies to refiners to meet domestic fuel demand and compensate for price differences between domestic and international markets. This decision followed a reduction in subsidies last month, which had been criticized by President Vladimir Putin for exacerbating domestic fuel market conditions.
