Brent Rises to $92 as Trump Rules Out Iran Talks, Strikes Expand
Oil prices climbed for a fourth day toward $100 a barrel as US military strikes on Iran expanded and diplomatic avenues closed, threatening to disrupt critical global crude shipping routes.
Brent crude rose to trade around $92 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate climbed above $85, extending a four-day rally as geopolitical risks to global supply intensified. President Donald Trump played down the prospect of near-term negotiations with Tehran while threatening broader strikes, including at Iran's suspected Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site.
The American military has now conducted an 11th straight day of attacks against Iran, aiming to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz following recent attacks on three tankers near Oman. US Central Command stated the waterway remains open despite Iranian aggression, but observed vessel traffic through the area has fallen to its lowest level in three weeks.
Disruption risks are multiplying beyond the Persian Gulf. The market is also pricing in a spate of attacks on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal on Russia's Black Sea coast, a vital infrastructure node that ships the majority of Kazakhstan's crude exports.
The strain on physical supply chains is becoming evident in the Red Sea, a crucial export corridor Saudi Arabia has relied upon to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Vessel tracking shows some tankers approaching Yemeni waters have paused or reversed course toward the Suez Canal, though other ships continue to transit the area.
Trump claimed Iran “want to desperately meet,” but stated the US has no interest in talks, an assertion Tehran publicly dismissed. With diplomatic off-ramps closing, crude prices have become highly reactive to daily shifts in military rhetoric.
Major banks are preparing clients for the possibility of a return to triple-digit oil. Bernstein warned that a prolonged conflict dragging into year-end, paired with further draws in commercial inventories across the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, could push Brent past $100. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has flagged a similar risk, though it is not the bank's base case.
