When I first started my business in the oil industry many years ago, success depended heavily on managing physical barrels, building strong relationships and reacting swiftly to market shifts as they happened. Today, the industry has undergone a profound transformation driven by emerging technologies that address the growing demands for greater efficiency, safety and sustainability.

Traders’ toolkit today: more data, faster decisions

Artificial intelligence is at the heart of this change. It empowers faster, smarter decision-making, predicts equipment failures before they occur, enhances safety protocols and streamlines complex supply chains. Beyond boosting operational performance, AI plays a vital role in reducing emissions and optimising resource use – helping companies balance profitability with environmental responsibility, all while reducing risk. Adopting these new technologies has thus become a necessity for staying competitive.

Looking at oil trading specifically, AI has become crucial for navigating volatile markets. It equips traders with real-time data insights, enabling quicker, more precise decision-making, better risk management and the potential to maximise returns like never before.

Today’s traders no longer operate in the dark. They use real-time satellite imagery, social media and AI-driven models to instantly interpret important signals. For example, as reported by the Financial Times, during the recent Iran-Israel conflict, traders did not have to guess whether the US airbase in Qatar was empty – satellite images clearly showed cleared runways days in advance. Vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz were tracked live, providing up-to-the-minute intelligence. Advanced algorithms and high-speed systems transformed this flood of data into rational decisions within minutes. When missiles struck but tankers kept moving, the market didn’t panic – it sold off. This demonstrated how today’s traders, equipped with advanced technologies, can make clear, informed decisions even in moments of geopolitical uncertainty.

Just 20 years ago, these capabilities would have been unimaginable. Today, advanced tools and technologies are transforming the oil trading industry, reshaping how traders operate, make decisions and manage risk globally. Here are a few examples of what is possible nowadays:

• Predict ship movements and charter costs in advance, enabling smarter route planning, capturing regional price differences and avoiding costly delays.
• Track global oil inventories in near real-time using satellite imagery for early insights into supply-demand changes, instead of waiting for official reports.
• Receive instant alerts on market-moving headlines, using Natural Language Processing (NLP) to scan news, OPEC statements and social media for signals on what matters, helping traders act before the rest of the world even blinks.
• Analyse order flows with AI to detect large institutional buying and selling patterns, improving trade timing and reducing costs.
• Integrate physical and financial trading, connecting real barrel movements with futures and swaps to gain clear supply-demand insights, hedge effectively, capture price differences and trade confidently in complex markets.

While AI carries its own challenges and risks, one thing is undeniable: traders using these tools are no longer guessing – they are making faster, sharper decisions with unparalleled clarity of the market. It is impressive to witness how AI has dramatically improved timing and reaction speed for oil traders. For businesses embracing these technologies, the performance and profitability gains are clear. In a market where every second and decision counts, adapting to this new reality is critical to stay competitive.