Daily briefings on oil, freight, FX and geopolitics, each with what it means for landed cost and lead time. 7 posts.
A strike on an LPG carrier in Hormuz kept Brent near $104 on 9 October. China's fuel-export restart and a WTO trade forecast raised to 3.9% now shape costs.
Pacific box rates slipped off a yearly high after Golden Week but stay elevated. A US-China truce, crude near $104, and Europe’s CBAM probe hit costs together.
Attacks in the Strait of Hormuz kept Brent near $100 as China reopened after its holiday. Transpacific box rates stay high and the won closed near 1,339.
Brent settled at $100.58 as Gulf crude flows recovered but tankers stayed scarce. Dry-bulk freight eased and the dollar softened after weak US jobs data.
Brent rose 4.37% on 1 Oct after reports of a US carrier heading to the Middle East, then eased to ~$100. Freight, BAF and FX checks.
Official schedule, parties, and issues for the second EU–China TIC meeting in China on 8–9 October 2026, plus a separate press roundup of single-outlet reports.
An April 2025 forecast on Trump’s tariff war, revisited with October 2026 data on the dollar, U.S. Treasuries, and the trade-deficit story.
