Refinery strikes hold Brent near $110 as diesel sets records

Brent crude is holding near $110 a barrel (BZ=F at $110.19, up 0.58% on the session) because the supply problem in this cycle is not raw barrels. It is what comes out of a refinery. Ukraine resumed its air campaign against Russian refining capacity after an energy ceasefire collapsed, the October 15 strike on Rosneft’s Ryazan refinery being the marker, and the product market is where the stress is landing: heating oil and diesel (HO=F) held at a record $4.76 while gasoline (RB=F) sat near $3.11. The counterweight is political. A US-Russia agreement to release 300,000 tonnes of diesel into global markets is the bid to cap the rally that the same administration blames on Ukrainian attacks. Thi…