Back to the futures for Chinese crude
The successful opening of a long-awaited yuan-denominated oil futures contract bodes well for the country’s aim to create a regional benchmark
After nearly six years of speculation, rumours, and declared intentions, the Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) finally launched China's first-ever oil futures contract on 26 March. Liquidity was strong on launch day, with 40,656 contracts worth around ¥17.6bn ($2.8bn) filtering through the system, according to the exchange's figures. The most active September contract settled at ¥429.9 a barrel, after fluctuating between ¥426.3/b and ¥447.1/b during the trading session. Before the INE opening, domestic and international market participants—both speculative investors and oil companies looking to mitigate risks taken in oil markets—might have been forgiven for scepticism. The exchan
Also in this section
9 January 2026
OPEC+ remains on track as output falls, with only Gabon failing to hit its output targets in December, although Kazakhstan’s compliance was involuntary
9 January 2026
The Latin American producer’s crude prospects rely on a multi-pronged approach where even the relatively easy wins will take considerable time, effort and cost
9 January 2026
While many forecasters are reasserting the importance of oil and gas, petrostates should be under no illusion things are changing, and faster than they might think
8 January 2026
Indonesia and Malaysia are at the dawn of breathtaking digital capabilities. Their energy infrastructure must keep up with their ambitions
