Crude Oil

The U.S. will release '172 million barrels' of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This is more than 40% of an overall release that has been coordinated with other allies to help lower soaring prices caused by disruptions in supply due to the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. The sale of?U.S. The?U.S. The U.S. Department of Energy announced that the U.S. withdrawal would start next week and last for about four months. SPR holds approximately 415 million barrels of crude oil, the majority of which are high sulfur or sour, which U.S. refineries can process. The crude oil is...

U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright announced on Wednesday that the U.S. would release 172,000,000?barrels?of oil?from its strategic 'petroleum -reserve? in an effort to lower oil prices, which have soared because of supply shocks caused by the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. Wright said that the'release' is part of the 400 million barrels of oil released by the International Energy Agency earlier in the day. Wright stated that the release of the film will start next week, and it will take?about 120 days for delivery. On February 28, the U.S., Israel and other countries began to attack Iran. Iran...

Even if the Iran War ends soon, U.S. oil prices will be structurally higher this year. Investors may have to reconsider their optimistic 2026 earnings estimates. The consensus oil outlook for 2026 was quite bearish while Wall Street's earnings forecasts were very optimistic. This has not changed. According to LSEG 'data, the full-year earnings growth estimate for 2026 was nearly 16% as of?Friday. This is up from 14% a year ago and 12% a year before. These 'rosy forecasts' assume that oil prices will average $60 per barrel this year, but those expectations have disappeared with the U.S. and Israeli...

Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that the U.S. will contribute "a little" to the IEA's plan to release a record number of 400 million.barrels.of oil from various countries' reserves in an effort to control the prices which have risen due to.the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran. In an interview given to local TV in Ohio, Trump didn't?say? how much oil the U.S. will contribute. He said only, "Right now, we will reduce it a bit and that brings down the prices." U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) hold 415.4 million barrels. Most of this is high sulfur crude that U.S....

Investors might need to reconsider their optimistic 2026 earnings estimates for U.S. corporations, even if Iran's war is over soon. The consensus forecast for 2026 for oil was a bit bearish while Wall Street's earnings predictions were surprisingly optimistic. This has not changed. According to LSEG data as of Friday, the full-year earnings growth estimate for 2026 was nearly 16%. This is up from 14% in 2017 and 12% last year. Those rosy forecasts assumed an average 'oil price' this?year of $60 per barrel – an expectation that vanished into thin air when the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran...

Donald Trump, the U.S. president, announced plans on Tuesday for a new oil refinery in Brownsville. He thanked Reliance Industries, an Indian energy company, for its contribution to the project. Trump announced the project as U.S. motorists are reacting to the spike in gas prices after the U.S. - Israel war with?Iran. He also made the announcement while Republicans and Democrats prepare for the midterm elections, which could determine the party that controls Congress during the final two years of Trump’s presidency. America First Refining stated in a press release that, once operational, a 168,000 barrel per day (bpd), refinery,...

The Wall Street Journal reported that the International Energy Agency had proposed to release the largest amount of oil'reserves ever released in order to counter supply disruptions caused by the war against Iran. Brent futures were trading?up?11 cents or 0.13% at $87.91 per barrel at 0129 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate traded 7 cents higher, and was last up 0.08 percent at $83.52 per barrel. Both contracts fell immediately after the WSJ article, reversing gains made in WTI. The WSJ reported that the IEA proposed drawdown would be greater than the 182,000,000 barrels of crude oil that IEA members countries...

After a?U.S. Donald Trump said that the Middle?East conflict could "end soon" despite the fact that?the?U.S. Israel and the United States pounded Iran's airspace with heavy strikes. The U.S. stock market lost momentum, losing early gains and sliding into negative territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.07%. The S&P 500 fell 0.2%. And the Nasdaq composite was little changed. The oil prices have fallen by over 11%. Brent futures LCOc1 dropped $11.16, or 11 %, to settle at $86.70 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate CLc1 crude oil settled at $83.45 per barrel, down by $11.32 or 11.9%. Both...

Wall Street stocks recovered and oil prices fell sharply after U.S. president Donald Trump said the Middle East conflict could "end soon" even as the U.S., Israel and Iran pounded Iran with what both the Pentagon and Iranians?said were the'most intense airstrikes ever. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%; the S&P 500 was up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.25%. The STOXX 600 Index in Europe, which had been declining for three trading days straight, recovered some of its earlier gains and finished the day up 1.65%. MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan increased by around 3.4%....

The U.S. and Israel war against?Iran is likely to hit consumers hard across the United States' economic spectrum. This could undermine a key component of the economy that was?expected? to boom this year due in part because of a hefty income tax refund, low unemployment and rising asset prices. Analysts felt that both "spurs", of the U.S.'so-called K-shaped economic model, could maintain or even increase spending in the upcoming months. Wealth effects would lead better-off families and service industry workers to spend more, while windfall tax refunds due to 'new exemptions on overtime and tip income, helped hourly workers. Both...

The central banks are watching the Iran oil shock with hawk-like eyes. Even if the main concern is inflation, it is not the only one. The worst case scenario for top policymakers would be that the crude price spike proves to be a breaking point in multiple financial stress fractures. Already, the central banks are being challenged by the surge in oil prices due to supply disruptions caused by more than a week of "war" in the Middle East. It's an age-old debate whether oil price spikes, which raise inflation and inflation expectations, ultimately hurt household and business finances to...

Iran's Revolutionary Guards announced on Tuesday that they will not allow "one single litre" of oil to be shipped out of the Middle East as long as U.S. attacks and Israeli attacks continue. This prompted a warning by?President Donald Trump, who said the U.S. could hit Iran harder if it blocks exports from this vital energy producing region. The increased rhetoric did not stop the sharp decline in crude prices or the rally in global stocks that followed after Trump expressed his confidence in an end to hostilities as soon as possible, even after Iran named Mojtaba Khmenei its new...

China's independent smaller refiners maintain output to cash in on the surge in domestic fuel price, but may be forced into trimming runs as of late April, when cheap feedstocks from inventories are running out and new deliveries will cost more in this war-induced rally, industry and trade sources reported. The plants in Shandong Province, China, the hub of smaller refineries, known as teapots, that account for roughly a quarter or more of the country's output, keep their run rates constant to maximize fuel sales, which are 20%-30% higher than before Israel and U.S. launched an attack on Iran on...

The external balance of India and its government finances may be affected if oil prices remain high for a long time, according to economists. This is because the Iran War will increase the cost of oil imports and the subsidies required to keep key commodities affordable. India is considered one of the most vulnerable countries to an oil shock because it imports almost 90% of its crude and about 50% of its natural gas. India imports more than?half? of its crude from the Middle East where the U.S./Israeli war against Iran has disrupted export flows. India's oil reserves are currently...

These are the most popular?stories from the New York Times business pages. These'stories' have not been verified and we cannot vouch for their accuracy. The International Energy Agency has agreed to release a record number of 400 million barrels from its strategic oil stockpiles in order to combat a rise in 'global crude oil prices' since the beginning of the 'U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration announced it would launch?two new?trade investigations into excess 'industrial capacity' in 16'major trading partners' and forced labor to rebuild tariffs pressure after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out much of Trump's...

OPEC announced?on?? Wednesday that Saudi Arabia increased its oil production sharply in February, ahead of U.S. & Israeli attacks on Iran. It also maintained its forecasts regarding a relatively strong growth in global oil demand this year. Sources familiar with the plan stated in February that Saudi Arabia increased output and exports in preparation for a possible U.S. strike against Iran, which could disrupt Middle?East supply. The attack occurred on February 28, and the ensuing conflict caused oil exports to be disrupted, production to stop and prices to soar. In a report published on OPEC's website, Saudi Arabia informed the...

Sanae Takaichi, Japan's Prime Minister, said that Japan will release 15 days of private sector oil reserves as well as one month of state oil reserves. This is in preparation for the International Energy Agency's action. She said that to avoid a disruption in gasoline and other petroleum products supplies, Japan would tap its reserves with the G7 and IEA. However, they will start releasing them 'from 16 March. Takaichi, in a broadcast, said that Japan would act before waiting for formal IEA?approval?of a coordinated release of international reserves to ease the global energy'market supply and?demand. It will release reserves...

ECB Vice-President Luis de Guindos stated on Wednesday that financial market volatility could amplify shocks to the economy. The European Central Bank is expected to consider various scenarios of 'growth and inflation' when determining its policy next week. The fallout of the war in Iran has likely pushed inflation higher, and increased pressure on the ECB to step in and curb price pressures. De Guindos acknowledged that the forecasting process has become "more complex" and the volatility of the markets could have a greater impact on the real economy. He told a Madrid conference that "an amplification of the shock...

U.S. indexes of the stock market have so far weathered the oil shock this month well because investors are expecting only a slight GDP impact from higher energy prices. This'resilience' masks the fact that income is shifting from households to 'Big Energy, and this could be a very dangerous trend in an election year. As uncertainty continues to rage about the length and extent of the Iran War, the sharp and volatile rises in energy costs have caused oil and natural gas prices to look structurally higher for the coming year. Fertilizer shipments are also being held up in the...

Iran warned that its state security forces are ready to "finger on the trigger" in the event of any renewed anti-government protests. After a series of heavy bombardments on Tuesday in the region, the combatants continued their assaults on targets?in Israel and Lebanon, as well as the Gulf, early Wednesday morning, as the war entered its '12th day. The war has blocked the Strait of Hormuz and halted the flow of fossil fuels from the oil-rich Gulf. After a surge in crude prices on Monday the stock markets recovered and global energy prices fell as investors betted that U.S. president...

Yuri Ushakov, a Kremlin adviser on foreign policy, said that Russian 'President Vladimir Putin', during a phone conversation with Donald Trump of the United States, made a number of proposals to a halt the conflict involving Iran. Ushakov told reporters that the two leaders discussed the conflict in Ukraine, and that the Russian gains should prompt Kyiv's negotiating team to work towards a resolution. He called the whole?discussion "very substantial", and added that it "would likely have practical implications for future work between the two countries". Ushakov stated that Putin "expressed a number of thoughts aimed at ending the Iranian...

The price of oil soared to $119 a barrel on Monday. This is the highest it has been since mid-2022. Some major producers reduced their supply and there were fears that shipping would be disrupted for a long time due to the U.S./Israeli war against Iran. Brent crude futures rose $12.77 or 14% to $105.46 per barrel?at 1126 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures (WTI) were up $13.66 or 14% at $103.56. Brent hit $119.50 per barrel in a whirlwind session, its highest-ever price increase on a single date. WTI also reached $119.48. Brent is up 66%, and WTI...

India's Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated on Monday that the country does not expect the inflation rate to increase significantly as a result of a?"jump" in crude oil prices caused by the?war in the Middle East. Domestic price levels are still a "bit below the lower end of the central banks tolerance band." Early trade saw oil prices rise by 26%, the highest level since July 2022. This was after Iran announced that Mojtaba Khmenei would succeed his father Ayatollah Ayatollah Khamenei who had been killed in an air strike by Israel and the United States a little over a...

The United States, China and other major countries are making miscalculations, and retreating to their narrow interests, which threaten to turn the conflict in Iran into an international crisis for the supply of refined oil products. The media focuses a lot on the price for crude oil. Brent crude futures, which are the benchmark, jumped up to 20% in the early Asian trading on Monday, reaching $111.04 per barrel. This is the highest level since July 2022. The price of refined fuels, such as gasoline, jet fuel and diesel, has risen even more than crude oil. These are the fuels...