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HNewsWire-While the world has been fixated on crude oil and gasoline in recent weeks, we have been alerting readers to a much more severe situation unfolding in diesel, a source of energy that is vitally crucial in keeping the "just in time" world functioning on schedule.

As a reminder, here are some of the stories we've published on the subject in recent weeks, many of which were written before to the Ukraine war:

Diesel Is the Inflationary Driver of the US Economy Canary - February 8th

Diesel stocks in the United States are on the verge of collapsing - Feb 18

China Requests That State-Owned Refiners Halt Gasoline and Diesel Exports - Mar 10

Global Diesel Shortage Increases the Risk of Higher Oil Prices Spike - March 12th

Fast forward to today, when the presidents of one of the world's top commodities trading firms and the largest independent oil trader spoke at the FT Commodities Global Summit in Lausanne, Switzerland on Tuesday.

According to the corporate leaders, up to 3 million barrels of oil and its products could be lost from Russia as a result of sanctions, which is consistent with previous estimates, and warned that global markets face a diesel squeeze, with Europe most at risk of a "systemic" shortage that could lead to fuel rationing.

"The main issue for everyone will be fuel supply." "Europe buys around half of its diesel from Russia and roughly half from the Middle East," said Russell Hardy, CEO of the Swiss oil trader Vitol. "There is a systematic diesel shortage."

According to the Financial Times, which covered their remarks, these imports suggest that Russian supplies account for around 15% of Europe's diesel consumption.

According to Hardy, the transition to higher diesel usage over gasoline in Europe has contributed to fuel shortages. He also said that in reaction to increasing prices, refineries may increase diesel production at the cost of other oil-derived goods to shore up supply, but he cautioned that rationing was a possibility.

"Diesel is not only a European issue; this is a worldwide problem," Torbjorn Tornqvist, co-founder and chair of Geneva-based Gunvor Group, noted. It really is."

Tornqvist also cautioned that European gas markets were no longer working correctly, owing to traders' need for cash to cover hedging positions from banks. "I believe it's broken." "It really is," he said. "I never imagined that someone would remark, 'Oh, gas has dropped to 100 per megawatt hour, it's extremely inexpensive.'"

Gas futures tied to TTF, Europe's wholesale gas price, have ranged from about €70 per megawatt hour before to Russia's invasion of Ukraine to above €230 two weeks ago, before falling below €100 this week. Prior to May 2021, European gas prices were less than €20 per megawatt hour.

As previously reported, Europe's major energy dealers have called on governments and central banks to give emergency liquidity assistance to keep gas and electricity markets operating, as significant price movements caused by the Ukraine conflict have pressured commodities markets. According to Hardy, in order to transport a cargo comparable to one megawatt hour of liquefied natural gas priced at €97, dealers must supply €80 in cash, putting a pressure on their financial needs.

Worse, indicating that Europe is in for an even colder winter, Tornqvist said that European utilities will struggle to fill gas storage for next winter due to the "paralyzed" status of the spot market for gas unless authorities stepped in to offer assurances to shield consumers from price volatility.

But, returning to diesel, Bloomberg's Javier Blas tweeted a few of the worst remarks from today's FT commodities summit:

"The diesel market is really tight," says Trafigura CEO Jeremy Weir. It's going to grow tighter, which will almost certainly lead to stock outs," referring to when gas stations run out of gasoline.

"Europe is so short on diesel," says Gunvor CEO.

"The issue that everyone is worried about will be fuel supply," says Vitol CEO.

Needless to add, without diesel, not only would European traffic come to a standstill, but most, if not all, US truck-based logistical support and supply chains will be rendered inoperable. The global economy will suffer as a result.