The move is widely seen as symbolic as the war in the Middle East has choked off a critical waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil passes.
Listen to a few earnings calls this season, and you'll get the sense that CEOs are worried about high oil prices as the Iran war continues. But a look at the numbers shows those anxieties haven't had much of an impact yet on their profit expectations for this year.
Seven OPEC+ countries will raise oil output targets by 188,000 barrels per day in July, OPEC said in a statement after a meeting on Sunday.
OPEC+ is set to agree on Sunday a fourth increase in oil output targets in as many months, three OPEC+ sources said, even though the U.S. war with Iran is still preventing several of the group's members from pumping more.
There are growing worries that U.S. commercial oil inventories are too low for comfort as the war with Iran enters its fourth month far from a clear resolution — and a lot hinges on how much longer the conflict drags on.
Goldman Sachs said in a note on Friday that global oil demand has declined more than expected, posing two-sided risks to its fourth-quarter 2026 Brent crude price forecast of $90 a barrel and WTI forecast of $83 per barrel.
Oil prices were in retreat on Friday after having risen for three straight sessions earlier in the week, as diplomatic overtures to bridge differences between the U.S. and Iran continue.
Clean energy ETFs are soaring in 2026 as the Iran war boosts renewable adoption, energy security efforts and global green investments.
Crude oil drops a bit in early trading on Friday, perhaps due to a lack of major headlines. That being said, this is a market that is still waiting for clarity from the Middle East.
At the prairie town that calls itself the pipeline crossroads of the world, some 400 oil storage tanks sprawled across Cushing, Oklahoma, are nearly empty, drained by refiners worldwide to plug a massive shortfall in global supplies caused by war in the Middle East.
Brent crude and WTI prices were shrugging off fighting in Lebanon as the market concentrates on the U.S.-Iran peace talks.
Oil prices were little changed on Friday following sharp declines in the previous session, with prospects dimming for a near-term end to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran after the Hezbollah militia rejected a new ceasefire in Lebanon.