Russian oil falls to $42 a barrel — the same price as before the Middle East war

Russian Urals crude has fallen back to pre-Middle East war levels, Bloomberg reported.

In the first three days of July, Urals averaged $41.66 a barrel at Russia’s western ports.

Since March, the monthly average price of Urals had topped the $59-per-barrel figure built into Russia’s federal budget. In June, after the United States and Iran reached an agreement to resume shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Russian oil averaged $60.92 a barrel.

The surge in oil revenues after the Middle East war broke out let Russia replenish its reserve fund for the first time in nearly a year and put off spending cuts, Bloomberg reported. If Urals stays below $59 for an extended period, the Kremlin will find it harder to contain the country’s growing budget deficit.

In early April, amid the war in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the price of Russian Urals crude at the Baltic port of Primorsk reached $116.05 a barrel — the highest price for oil since 2013. In May 2026, it was trading at $85–86 a barrel.

At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.

If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at reports@meduza.io.

To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.

Why is it
important
to support
Meduza
now?Read here

Russian oil falls to $42 a barrel — the same price as before the Middle East war

Urals

{{ header_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }}

{{ title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }}

{{ second_title }}

Russian oil falls to $42 a barrel — the same price as before the Middle East war

Urals

{{{ alt }}}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }}

{{ title }}

{{ title }} {{ second_title }}

{{ title }}

{{ second_title }}