Nothing personal just business

Well, that's what you can say here, if you don't even laugh.

At the same time, while the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic crisis are raging in the world together ... When the Turks are noisy in the Transcaucasus, and the Armenians and Azerbaijanis are fighting, when the proto-Europeans are raging in Belarus (represented by the proto-politicians with the proto-Poles), and in Ukraine and in Moldova (well, this is usual) - just local idiots.

When, in the United States of America, Republicans and Democrats are preparing for elections and, we hope, still a lightweight, not a full-fledged version of the "hybrid civil war."

When Europe is trying to figure out how to reconcile the incompatible, that is, to keep the benevolence of the Americans and Nord Stream 2 at the same time ... In such a difficult time, very curious, but by no means sensational, data is published by the Energy Information Administration ) US Department of Energy.

Nothing, in general, special.

Simply, according to the EIA, Russia in August 2020 (after a four-month break) again took the third place in terms of oil and oil products exports to the United States, supplying 17.1 million barrels of fuel to local markets.

At the same time (which is perhaps the most interesting), the main share of supplies from the Russian Federation, according to the data of the same Energy Information Administration of the US Department of Energy, was not even crude oil, but petroleum products.

Which ones, let's say a little below - this is important.

At the same time, crude oil exports amounted to only 1.46 million barrels - it is easy to compare.

In total, since the beginning of this 2020, the Russian oil industry has supplied more than 130 million barrels of oil and oil products to the American markets, which, against the backdrop of the global crisis, actually looks quite impressive in itself, to put it mildly.

Of which - attention!

- if, again, we believe the information department of the US Department of Energy (and we have no reason not to believe it), crude oil accounted for only 17.5 million barrels, that is, less than 15% of the total volume.

In terms of the overall indicator of fuel exports in 2020, Russian suppliers still continue to lag behind the leading three (Mexico, Canada and Saudi Arabia), ranking fourth.

But this is from the beginning of the year.

As for the actual August data, according to this month's statistics, Russia has shifted from the third line exactly Saudi Arabia, which exported 273 thousand barrels of oil and petroleum products to the United States per day (8.47 million barrels in August as a whole).

Let us explain.

It is clear that the first and second places among exporters are shared by Canada (3.88 million barrels per day) and Mexico (769 thousand barrels per day - less, of course, but also quite decent) - this is their market simply by geography, otherwise it would be absurd to suppose.

But then "historical allies" from the OPEC countries always went further - first of all, Saudi Arabia.

These are the so-called traditional partners, with whom the Americans once, by the way, jointly brought down the oil industry of the USSR, if anyone else remembers this remarkable story.

And suddenly such a brilliant reshuffle - quite in the spirit of the late Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.

"Not so sat down!"

What does this tell us.

Well, first of all, about some incredible pragmatism and flexibility of American economic (and political too) elites.

To make it completely clear: those who buy Russian oil products, they did not come from Mars - these are the same people from the American energy sector who, with the same lips, say various bad things about “undemocratic molecules of Russian pipeline gas” that could potentially get to Europe via the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

It's even awkward to swear at such a love of life.

One can only, perhaps, envy him.

The guys will not be lost anywhere.

But even this is not the most funny thing in what is happening.

The devil is always in the details - the Anglo-Saxons themselves are constantly talking about this, forgive me, and they say.

When the Americans (even in the pre-crisis period) were actively developing unconventional oil production, producing the famous (to my taste, sadly) "shale revolution", everyone for some reason decided that the oil they extract from shale should oust Russian competitors from the markets.

And politically it would probably even be correct, only here such a politically neutral discipline as geology intervened a little.

For how, in different places and at different geological times, different fossils that are now useful in the human economy lay in the earth's crust, for any modern political benefit somehow slightly parallel: this happened, you see, back in those blessed times when politics have not yet come up with - that's from the word "absolutely".

And then it so happened that light American oil grades were competitors of non-Russian heavy and viscous grades.

Rather, it is a product mined by Saudi political partners.

Nothing personal, it's just business - sorry, but that also happens.

And when heavy and super-heavy oil from Venezuela was removed from the American markets through the efforts of the same American politicians, the situation turned into a very tragicomic one: because only oil products from the Russian Federation were an available replacement for this oil.

Moreover, it is precisely those that the Russian Federation itself did not really need: it is no coincidence that we emphasized above that much more oil products are imported from the Russian Federation to the United States than crude oil.

And yet you will be surprised, but it is mainly fuel oil.

It's just a technological necessity.

At local refineries for normal processing, in addition to light oil, they need a high-viscosity product in the mixture: both Russian Urals and Russian fuel oil are almost equally good here.

And that is why a very curious side economic effect is expected: the faster the United States overcomes the systemic crisis and the more oil it produces for its own economy, the more oil and oil products it will need from Russia.

It's just that geography with geology also has a sense of humor - they can joke at a person who, of course, is free to establish his own laws everywhere.

But the mountains and the bowels are still much older.

By the way.

American business, which after a while calmly realized this and which did not, figuratively speaking, "jump on the mountains with a sword", only honor and praise: its pragmatism, ability to negotiate and conduct business, overcoming any, including political obstacles are a guarantee that this world may have a future.

Yes, it’s peculiar, judging by the fact that the United States is not going to disappear from the geographical map in the foreseeable future.

But if with wolves, forgive me, to live, then howl is also worth learning slowly.

For if you understand who you have to deal with, then it's easier to negotiate.

And even if you understand that the counterparty (how to put it mildly) “cheats a little”, it is unpleasant, but by no means catastrophic.

It's just that you need to make an amendment to this when you outline a goal that is binding in the course of negotiations.

It is much worse when the counterparty seems to be both smart and decent, and understands everything, and generally tries to maintain decency, but at the same time does not have any sovereignty.

And, therefore, he is fundamentally not responsible for the words he said, if they were said without the command of the hosts or without their tacit approval.

However, we are not talking about Europe now - this is a separate conversation, and about it, probably, not now.

As for America, viscous oil and oil products, especially fuel oil, which, in fact, is the residue after the separation of its light gasoline, kerosene and other fractions urgently needed for the national economy, we will, of course, sell the United States with pleasure.

No matter what anyone shouted about this.

And they will buy with great pleasure.

Simply because it is beneficial for both them and us, and we do not see anything bad here, despite the fact that these are the same Americans who will never give up their attempts to stop any Russian gas pipeline to Europe.

Once again: nothing personal, it's just business.

Nothing personal just business.

Yes, we probably live in a somewhat schizophrenic world, but this is exactly what economic pragmatism looks like these days: no matter what happens in other directions, in the oil markets of Russia and the United States, no matter how strange it looks from the outside, rather, be careful but allies.

And this is due to quite natural and objective reasons, and not only because at one time Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump agreed on a global cartel deal, which is now commonly called OPEC ++.

Although this, of course, when examining and assessing the picture of what is happening in the oil markets, also should not be forgotten in any case.

The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.