Good morning, friends. The news cycle shows no sign of slowing down this week as the IATA AGM in Dubai continues. We also have M&A news emerging from UAE and this month’s PMI reports from Saudi, Egypt and Kuwait. Let’s dive right in.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Qatar Airways is in talks with Australia’s government to boost the number of routes it operates to the country, Reuters reports, citing comments made by CEO Badr Mohammed Al Meer. The carrier is expecting to hear positive news from Australia within the next few months, Al Meer added. An earlier request for additional routes was turned down by Australia last year, with Australia’s government citing invasive body searches of five Australian women at Hamad International Airport in 2020 as a reason for the block and denying allegations that it was being pressured by Australian flag carrier Qantas. Australia’s decision to cap Qatar Airways’ flights to Australia has also hit Australian farmers looking to ship fresh boxed meat to regional markets.

#2- Israel will allow more oil tankers to dock at its Red Sea Eilat port despite environmental concerns as it attempts to boost energy security amid regional conflicts, Reuters reports, citing officials and government documents. The Israeli government intends to revoke restrictions imposed in 2021 by the Environmental Protection Ministry which capped the amount of oil that can be unloaded at a jetty in Eilat to 2 mn tons of oil, the newswire says. The jetty belongs to state-owned Europe Asia Pipeline Co (EAPC) — which operates a pipeline cutting across Israel and connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea — and is touted as an alternative to tanker transits via the Suez Canal. Israel’s Netanyahu-led government is lobbying for lower restrictions on EPAC, including boosts to volumes unloaded at Eilat and allowances for the uptake of fuels both for trade and domestic use, the newswire added.

Reduced restrictions on EAPC might resurrect a previously canceled 2020 USD 50 mn oil agreement with the UAE which would have seen some 50 tankers offload Emirati oil cargoes at the Eilat terminal every year, the newswire explained. Israel’s environment ministry had blocked the arrangement from proceeding by imposing the 2 mn tons of oil cap, but recent developments have highlighted the strategic value of EPAC. Israel currently imports most of its oil via Mediterranean ports at Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Haifa, Reuters explained.

MARKET WATCH-

Opec+ may be hinting at a shift in its production policy as the fine print on its latest decision reveals it will gradually phase-out output cuts as early as October 2024, according to Bloomberg’s Javier Blas. This could either mean the group is reversing its course, growing eager to pump more oil into the market, or strategically shifting away from its USD 100-a-barrel oil target, Blas wrote.

Giving up the quest for “triple-digit prices” would not be a mistake, he added, saying that “somewhat lower prices could help it in the long-term: by easing global inflation and therefore prompting lower interest rates and higher economic growth in emerging economies; and by removing the implicit subsidy that Opec+ was granting to its US shale rivals.”

There is no telling whether the market can digest more oil: Opec’s planned phase-out is sparking debate among pundits about whether market conditions are ready to absorb the group’s extra barrels, Bloomberg reports.

Meanwhile, gov’t is playing the long game: “We are waiting for interest rates to come down and a better trajectory when it comes to economic growth … not pockets of growth here and there,” Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told Reuters on the sidelines of the Opec+ meeting on Sunday. “We will maintain our precautious and preemptive approach,” he added.

BACKGROUND- Opec+ extended crude oil production cuts during its meeting in Riyadh on Sunday. Production will remain unchanged until the end of this September, when the group will begin phasing out cuts over a 12-month period.

Oil prices fell over 3% yesterday to their lowest in close to four months as traders reacted to the Opec+ meeting. Brent crude futures fell by an additional 0.63% this morning in early trading to USD 77.87 a barrel at 0343 GMT and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures dipped 0.51% USD 73.71 a barrel.

Investors have purchased petroleum contracts for the first time in seven weeks, Reuters reports. Hedge funds and investors snapped up some 21 mn barrels in the top six futures and option contracts for the seven days ending 28 May, the newswire said. The purchases represented a turnaround following six weeks of selling which saw 304 mn barrels offloaded by investors since 9 April, ICE Futures Europe and US Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed. The majority of purchases (upwards of 16 mn barrels) represented closeouts on bearish short positions, with a minority (upwards of 6 mn barrels) seeing the establishment of long bullish positions, Reuters explained.

PSA-

Jordan’s Aqaba Container Terminal’s operating system database will be down today between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM local time, due to an update, according to a statement. The N4 system (with all components including XPS, ECN4, N4 Mobile, N4 Billing), Crane OCR, Integrations with Stakeholders, EDI Messages, Berth Planner, and DPOS services will be inaccessible during the maintenance window, the statement said.

Maersk is contending with high terminal congestion at Mediterranean and Asian ports, incurring delays and reshuffles to schedules, according to a notice. Delays have led the carrier to cancel trips, introducing two blank sailings to Qingdao, China and Busan, Korea to its schedule.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Lebanon will host the East Med Maritime Conference on Thursday, 27 June in Beirut. The event will gather industry leaders to discuss the latest developments in shipping, maritime, and offshore industries to discuss industry innovations, alternative fuels, and decarbonizing emissions in the maritime sector and ports.

Turkey will host the ACI Europe Annual Congress on Tuesday, 2 July to Thursday, 4 July in Istanbul. The event will bring together 500 C-level airport executives, as well representatives from businesses engaged with airports, airlines, aircraft manufacturers, and other stakeholders. The event will highlight discussions on the current state of the airport industry, geopolitics, the Turkish market, resilience, sustainability, and the diversification of revenues.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

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