Brent hits $85 as US-Iran strikes renew supply fears
Crude prices are on track for their largest weekly surge in months after the collapse of a US-Iran truce sparked sustained military strikes and raised the threat of a Red Sea export blockade.
Brent crude rose $1.05 to $85.28 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate gained $1.03 to $79.98. The gains erased prior session losses and pushed both benchmarks nearly 12% higher this week, representing a dramatic repricing of geopolitical risk in the energy sector. Brent is headed for a third consecutive weekly gain, while WTI tracks a second.
The price spike follows the abrupt end of a memorandum of understanding that had paused fighting last month. U.S. Central Command confirmed forces launched a "new wave of strikes against Iran for the sixth consecutive night" at 1800 GMT on Thursday. This followed two major daytime bombardments near Iran's southern coast the previous day, marking the first time the U.S. launched two large waves of air strikes in a single day since the truce.
Tehran has responded with drone and missile barrages targeting U.S. military installations in neighboring states, including a recently expanded air base in Jordan. Beyond the immediate military exchange, the hostilities have already constrained physical oil flows moving out of the Strait of Hormuz.
A broader disruption to global energy trade now appears possible. Three sources reported that Iranian leadership has instructed its Houthi allies to prepare to close the Red Sea oil route. This blockade would be triggered if U.S. strikes hit Iranian power infrastructure, adding a secondary chokepoint to the market's risk calculus.
The rapid escalation has alarmed top energy authorities. "Oil security is still a critical issue," International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol said at a Council on Foreign Relations event in Washington on Thursday. "We should be worried, and I am worried, if the situation does not improve in the next few weeks."
From a technical standpoint, IG analysts noted that WTI could test the mid-$80s if the benchmark maintains key support above the mid-$70s. Such a move would likely signal a structural shift in trading ranges rather than a temporary speculative blip.
The resulting market volatility is also spawning new financial products. Trump Media & Technology Group unveiled a licensed, paid data feed designed to give banks and trading firms "the fastest" access to posts from influential Truth Social accounts. The company explicitly noted that posts from President Donald Trump frequently move oil markets.
