Brent climbs above $117 after tanker blast in Hormuz and strikes on Saudi energy sites
Brent settled up $2.76 at $117.64 a barrel as a tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz and Houthi attacks targeted Saudi facilities, per Reuters.
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what happened
Oil benchmarks rose on Friday as traders priced in the danger of wider supply interruptions across the Middle East. Reuters reported that ICE Brent December futures gained $2.76 to settle at $117.64 a barrel, while WTI December crude added $2.12 to close at $104.12. The spread between the two benchmarks held near minus $12.88.
The jump followed an incident in the Strait of Hormuz, where a tanker was struck by explosive devices fixed to its hull by a small boat. The UK Maritime Trade Operations service, UKMTO, reported the attack, and it remains unclear who carried out the strike. Maritime sources described it as the first confirmed successful hit of this kind in the waterway since the US-Israeli conflict with Iran began.
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis claimed attacks on several Saudi sites, including the Ras Tanura and Rabigh refineries and an Aramco production facility at Abqaiq. Even so, two of three ship-tracking firms cited by Reuters saw Saudi crude exports rise in October from September. The US Energy Information Administration said domestic crude output grew in August while demand for crude and products fell, and the US oil rig count increased by two. In Libya, an armed group shut a valve on the Hamada pipeline, halting about 15,000 barrels per day flowing to the Zawiya refinery, the National Oil Corporation said.
why it matters
For energy markets, the mix of shipping risk in Hormuz, strikes on Gulf refining assets and a halted Libyan flow tightens expectations for near-term supply. Traders are watching whether these incidents spread, and the wide gap between Brent and WTI shows how differently the two crudes are being priced.
market impact
Brent and WTI: supply risk from Hormuz and Saudi facilities pushes prices higher
- Brent pressure up — supply risk from the Persian Gulf supports the benchmark price
- WTI pressure up — higher global prices lift US crude too, though the spread stays wide
tags
instruments
sources
- Grades mixed as WTI, Brent spread unchanged — Reuters, 30 October 2026 at 22:34 UTC
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