Crude oil and refined product futures were again trading higher late Friday morning, with most contract on track for another round of week-to-week gains.
Markets continue to be roiled by the continuing conflict in the Middle East and the effective closure of Strait of Hormuz that has choked off tanker traffic through the waterway.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday said the U.S. would consider lifting sanctions on Iranian crude currently onboard tankers, a move that could bring about 140 million bbl onto the global market.
The Wall Street Journal and other news outlets reported that the Pentagon is sending three warships and thousands of additional Marines to the region, even as President Trump said he doesn't plan to put American boots on the ground in Iran. Still, the announcement prompted speculation about possible ground assaults as part of an effort to allow the resumption of tanker traffic through the Strait.
U.S. crude prices were up about 1.8% at 11 a.m. ET, with the lightly traded NYMEX April West Texas Intermediate contract up $1.86 to $98/bbl as it moves
toward expiration at the end of the day. The more-active May WTI contract was $1.28 higher at $96.83/gal.
Most activity in Brent crude and refined products was also focused on the next-month contracts.
May Brent futures were $1.28 higher at $109.93/gal and June Brent was up $1.91 to $105.69/bbl.
April ULSD was 11.6cts higher at $4.4580/gal while the May contract was up 7.52cts to $4.1716/gal. The April RBOB contract added 8.55cts to $3.2126/gal and the May contract was up 8.15cts to $3.1793/gal.
Brent prices are up about 6.11% from where they settled on Feb. 13, while ULSD futures have are nearly 11% higher. RBOB futures are about up abut 5.5% from a week ago.
The front-month WTI contract, however, was down about 1% from where it settled a week ago.
While petroleum price increases have slowed in the later half of the week, Thadeu Dos Santos, regional director at online broker Infinox, warned that energy markets remain "highly sensitive to developments in the Middle East and the risk of further supply disruptions."
"Oil markets are likely to remain driven by geopolitical headlines and the evolution of supply constraints," he said. "Prolonged disruptions or renewed escalation could keep prices elevated and volatility high."
- -
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 Steven Cronin, scronin@opisnet.com; Editing by Jeffrey Barber, jbarber@opisnet.com
(c) 2026 Oil Price Information Service, LLC. All rights reserved.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 20, 2026 12:07 ET (16:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
