The EU has warned Donald Trump against plans to ban US diesel exports to the global market, saying the move would negatively affect Europe and the United States. The European Commission has reacted with “concern” to reports this week that the US president could prevent diesel from reaching the global market. gallon. “I have said not to send diesel. We make a lot of diesel… I have asked for it. I have asked for it within my people,” he said. Olof Gill, a spokesman for the EU’s executive arm, said on Thursday that “any disruption would risk negatively impacting both sides” and the EU hoped that “close partners would consult each other before taking measures affecting shared markets.” A possible export ban could be “devastating” for Europe, and traders were quick to assess the continent’s dependence on US imports. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright warned that banning exports was a “blunt tool” that could damage US fuel supplies in the long term. For Europe, the ban could be much more damaging. U.S. diesel exports have accounted for a third of the continent’s imports this year, while supplies from war-damaged refineries in the Middle East and Russia have plummeted. In August, the United States supplied about half of Europe’s diesel imports. Prices at the pump have already risen to record levels in Germany and the Netherlands, leading to calls for political leaders to protect households from rising costs. In the UK, motorists may be just days away from hitting new record highs, raising concerns about the economic impact of further price rises for hard-pressed households. The RAC said the average cost of diesel was 197.75 pence per liter on Thursday, down from 142.38 pence before the start of the war with Iran. “A ban on U.S. exports would be devastating for diesel supplies in Europe, which would struggle to replace supply,” said Josh Michalowski, head of European diesel pricing at Argus Media, a commodities data provider. liter at BP Kinross Services in Perthshire, Scotland. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian Fuel stations across Europe are unlikely to run dry, because Europe produces around 70% of the diesel it consumes in domestic refineries. It also stores fuel in reserve. But experts fear that competing for cargoes on the global market will lead to higher market prices. So far, the diesel cargo market has remained relatively quiet since reports emerged this week of a possible diesel ban in the United States, according to Benedict George, European product director at Argus. He said traders were still weighing the extent to which the White House could limit U.S. exports. “If this perspective became even relatively serious [in the White House]It would be very serious for the European markets. There would be a degree of panic given how dependent buyers have become on American cargoes,” George said. “There is enough European diesel production to ensure we don’t run out of cargo, but losing American cargoes would mean buyers would have to compete with buyers in Asia for the few available cargoes from the Middle East and India, in what is already a very competitive global market.” news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotionThe price of diesel has outpaced the rising price of global oil markets due The Fawley oil refinery in Hampshire is one of four refineries left in the UK. number of motorists driving diesel passenger vehicles has fallen, it remains the lifeblood of the UK’s agricultural and logistics sectors by fueling heavy machinery, trucks and vans. The European Commission spokesperson said: “High-level contacts between the European Union and the US administration are continuing to collaborate with our international partners and the UK fuel industry.”
