Oil Prices Stay Near $100 Despite U.S. Move to Ease Sanctions on
Russian Oil
1. Global oil prices
remained elevated near $100
per barrel despite the decision by Donald Trump to temporarily
ease sanctions on Russian oil shipments.
2. Brent crude oil traded
around $102 per barrel
in London after settling at $100.46,
its highest level since August 2022.
3. West Texas Intermediate
crude, the U.S. benchmark, was trading near $98 per barrel after closing at $96.40.
4. The surge began after
strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28, raising
fears of supply disruptions.
5. Shipping through the
strategic Strait of Hormuz—which carries about 20% of global oil supply—has largely halted
due to security risks.
6. U.S. Treasury Secretary
Scott Bessent announced a temporary waiver allowing Russian oil already at sea to reach
global markets to boost supply.
7. Governments globally
agreed to release about
400 million barrels from strategic oil reserves to stabilize
markets.
8. Financial markets
reacted negatively, with the S&P 500 posting its largest single-day drop since the war
began, while Asian markets such as Nikkei 225 and Kospi also declined.
9. Fuel prices in the
United States have climbed sharply, with gasoline reaching $3.63 per gallon and
diesel $4.89 per gallon.
10. Analysts say markets remain
volatile as traders closely monitor developments in the Middle East and
potential disruptions to global energy supply.
The worldwide price of oil rose slightly on Friday,
continuing to trade at around $100 a barrel on heightened fears about the economic
impact of a sustained blockage of Middle East energy.
The latest move by President Trump to signal relief
to markets slowed but did not reverse the increase in prices. Treasury Secretary
Scott Bessent announced on Thursday night that the U.S.
government had temporarily removed sanctions on Russian oil currently at sea to
add oil to global markets.
Stock markets in Asia fell again on Friday, a day
after the S&P 500, the U.S. stock benchmark, slumped to its worst single-day
performance since the war began.
·
The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for
oil, was trading at about $102 a barrel on Friday morning in London. It settled
at $100.46 a barrel on Thursday, up 10.1 percent, the highest settlement level since
August 2022.
·
West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark,
was around $98 a barrel. It settled at $96.40 a barrel, up 10.5 percent, on Thursday.
·
Oil markets have been on a convulsive path since
the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. The price of Brent spiked
to nearly $120 a barrel on Monday as traders feared long-lasting cuts in supplies.
Prices have pulled back since then, but remain sharply higher than before the war.
·
Investors and analysts across the world are focused
on the Strait
of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that is a vital
trading route for oil and natural gas, which normally carries as much as one-fifth
of the world’s oil supply. Shipping traffic exiting the Persian Gulf through the
strait has been effectively halted and tankers are stranded because of the risk
that vessels could be attacked.
·
Governments have tried to assuage concerns about
the global supply of oil. World leaders agreed on Wednesday to release 400
million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves. Before its broader
waiver on Russian sanctions, the Trump administration last week similarly freed
India from some sanctions restricting its purchases of Russian oil.
·
Stocks in Europe were trading lower on Friday. The
Stoxx 600, a Pan-European index, was down about 1 percent.
·
Stock markets across Asia fell on Friday. The Nikkei
225 in Japan dropped 1.2 percent, and the Kospi index
in South Korea tumbled 1.7 percent.
·
On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 1.5 percent over
concerns about rising oil prices.
·
Gas prices rose on Friday to a national average
of $3.63 a gallon, according to the AAA motor club. The increase raised the cost
for drivers by 22 percent since the war began.
·
Gas prices don’t move in lock step with crude, usually
trailing increases or drops by a few days.
·
Diesel prices have increased even more quickly and
rose to $4.89 on Friday, up 30 percent since the start of the war.