Crude futures surged after reported attacks on Saudi crude tankers heightened concerns over Middle East oil supplies.
The September ICE Brent crude contract was trading $6.83 higher at $100.90/bbl on Thursday, with the October contract up $4.13 at $94.31/bbl. The September West Texas Intermediate contract rose $5.64 to $92.47/bbl, with October WTI up $3.62 at $87.26/bbl.
Refined product futures were also climbing, with August ULSD up 21.44cts at $4.3632/gal and September ULSD up 20.34cts at $4.2695/gal. The August RBOB contract was trading 6.24cts higher at $3.4771/gal, with September up 7.26cts at $3.3175/gal.
Brent climbed above $100/bbl for the first time since late May after Iran-backed Houthi militants said they had attacked two Saudi tankers bound for the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The waterway has become Saudi Arabia's primary crude export route following the near closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The latest escalation follows reduced traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and reports that some vessels have begun avoiding the Red Sea.
President Trump said the U.S. would hold Iran responsible for any further Houthi attacks on shipping and threatened "major military punishment" against Iran and the Houthis.
The surge in crude weighed on financial markets, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 500 points.
This content was created by Oil Price Information Service, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. OPIS is run independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
-- Reporting by Allegra Fradkin, afradkin@opisnet.com; Editing by Michael Kelly, mkelly@opisnet.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 23, 2026 12:33 ET (16:33 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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