Trump authorizes the purchase of Russian oil amid soaring hydrocarbon prices

BarcelonaThe US Treasury Department announced Thursday that it will temporarily authorize the purchase of Russian oil in transit. The measure aims to curb the surge in crude oil prices, which jumped more than 9% on Thursday after several days of increases and, despite moderating, continued to rise on Friday. On Friday, markets saw a 1.58% increase, reaching $102.04 per barrel of Brent crude, the European benchmark. Natural gas prices were following a similar trend at 9:00 AM, rising 1.24% to €51.5 per megawatt-hour (MWh) on the Dutch TTF market, which sets prices across the continent. These increases are less pronounced than in recent days, but they still contribute to the rising cost of hydrocarbons. With the removal of restrictions on Russian crude, thousands of barrels will enter the market, which should contribute to a decrease—or at least a moderation of the escalating price—of a barrel of oil. When announcing the measure, President Donald Trump's administration asserted that the ban on Russian oil purchases was key to pressuring Moscow in the war in Ukraine. However, it now indicates that this temporary exemption from the restriction, which will last until April 11, will not represent a significant benefit for Russia.

Last week, Washington authorized India to access Russian oil stranded at sea for a period of 30 days, and is now extending the measure globally. This contrasts with the US government's position until now, since last August Trump had increased tariffs on the Asian country Precisely as punishment for having acquired crude oil in Moscow.

Similarly, the US administration had imposed sanctions against Russia's main oil companies and had also pressured China to cut its purchases of Russian crude, which had affected its exports and explains part of the drop in oil prices during 2025. Russia was secretly exporting Russian oil to third countries, and the airstrikes by the Ukrainian armed forces against oil infrastructure (refineries, pipelines, storage facilities) on Russian territory had a negative impact on Moscow's production and export capacity.

The sale of hydrocarbons abroad is the main engine of the Russian economy and the largest source of income for the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin. With more revenue from oil exports, Russia will now gain financial breathing room to maintain the invasion of Ukraine, which began more than four years ago.

Stock markets in the red for another day

The Spanish stock market opened this Friday with a 0.83% drop, falling below 17,000 points, as it remains focused on the war in Iran. The day was marked by the release of a series of economic data, including the second estimate of US economic growth. Regarding the price of oil, after jumping more than 9% on ThursdayAt 9:00 AM on Friday, the rate of growth had moderated, but the price remained high, exceeding $102 per barrel. At the start of trading, the Ibex 35, Spain's main stock market index, fell to 16,991.6 points, a decline of 0.83%. Across the rest of Europe, stock markets also opened lower: London was down 0.5%; Frankfurt, 0.7%; Paris, 1.2%; and Milan, 0.9%. In Asia, Friday's session also closed with widespread losses: the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the region's largest, fell 1.4%, while Seoul declined 1.7%. Hong Kong and Shanghai lost 0.9% and 0.8%, respectively.