Black market for Russian, Iranian oil is in troubleBy Javier Blas / Bloomberg OpinionOil smuggling has been so enormously profitable that no matter how many obstacles Washington and Brussels put up, the barrels kept flowing. With a daily turnover of US$1 billion, the black market has been just too attractive. If anything, the switch has made the mainstream oil market tighter, putting a floor under prices. Under pressure from the US and the EU, it stopped importing Iranian oil in 2019, and it has reduced its purchases of Russian crude. That shifts 800,000 barrels a day from the black market into the regular market.

Source: Taipei Times February 08, 2026 17:22 UTC