Sales of petroleum products dropped to a six-and-a-half-year low at 4.42 million tons in the quarter ended September 30, 2019, as a contraction in industrial output. Moreover, this is the eighth successive quarter in which oil sales continued to fall in the country. Major decline in sales of furnace oil and high-speed diesel was also witnessed due to lack of requirement in power generation and drop in vehicle sales.
Two oil tankers were hit by explosions in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday. A fireball erupted on Norwegian-owned MT Front Altair after a suspected torpedo attack caused three explosions, while Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous was hit by another explosion. Mike Pompeo have blamed Iran for the attack based on investigations carried out on unexploded mine found on the vessel.