Nigerian Crude Holds Near $120 Price

Nigerian crude oil prices remained elevated near the $120 per barrel mark despite fresh progress in diplomatic negotiations between the United States and Iran aimed at easing tensions in the Middle East.

Bonny Light, Nigeria’s flagship crude grade, traded around $117 per barrel as global oil markets reacted to signals of possible de-escalation between Washington and Tehran.

The development followed comments by United States Vice President JD Vance, who said discussions between both countries had advanced significantly and indicated that neither side wanted a return to military conflict.

“We think we’ve come a long way. We think the Iranians want to reach an agreement,” Vance told reporters during a White House briefing.

United States President Donald Trump also announced that a planned military strike scheduled for Tuesday had been suspended, although he warned that military action could resume if negotiations fail.

Despite easing geopolitical tensions, Brent crude futures still closed lower by 82 cents at $111.28 per barrel, remaining near multi-month highs amid persistent concerns over global supply disruptions.

The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy routes through which about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass, has remained heavily disrupted due to ongoing regional tensions.

The International Energy Agency described the situation as one of the largest disruptions to global oil supply in recent history.

Reports also indicated that Iran had proposed a broader peace arrangement to the United States aimed at ending hostilities across the region, including Lebanon, while seeking the withdrawal of American forces from areas close to Iranian territory.

Meanwhile, Chinese state-owned refiners reportedly reduced crude processing volumes by more than one million barrels per day following supply disruptions and weaker refining margins linked to the conflict.

Data showed that Chinese refinery throughput dropped to about 8.4 million barrels per day in May compared to 9.5 million barrels per day recorded in March before the escalation in tensions involving Iran.

In Russia, operations at the Ryazan refinery, which accounts for nearly five per cent of the country’s refining capacity, were disrupted after a Ukrainian drone attack last week.

The refinery has significantly increased local crude consumption, sourcing most of its feedstock from Nigerian oil fields and reducing the volume available for export markets in Europe and Asia.

Imports of Premium Motor Spirit into Nigeria reportedly declined from about 25 million litres per day in January to approximately 3.7 million litres daily by April following increased domestic refining activity.

Industry projections indicated that Nigerian crude prices are likely to remain relatively strong as long as geopolitical tensions continue to support demand for Atlantic Basin light sweet crude grades.