(Investing) – Oil prices pared back earlier gains on Thursday, as investors weighed the impact of fresh U.S. strikes on Iranian targets and assessed data showing a drop in U.S. crude stockpiles.
As of 06:10 ET (10:10 GMT), Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, had climbed 0.4% to $91.14 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were slightly higher by 0.1% at $84.50 per barrel. Both contracts surged on Wednesday, fueled by reigniting violence in the Middle East.
The U.S. military said it had carried out a heavy wave of strikes against dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) targets across Iran early on Thursday local time, hitting military command centers, missile and drone facilities, coastal surveillance and defense sites.
The move comes after Iran launched ballistic missiles toward U.S. forces in the Middle East, all but ending immediate hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough. The missiles were intercepted, after which U.S. and Saudi forces carried out retaliatory strikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq that Washington said were involved in attacks on American troops and Saudi energy infrastructure.
U.S. President Donald Trump had told Fox News on Wednesday that Iran would be hit “hard” following Tehran’s missile attack on U.S. forces in Jordan.
The conflict has also spread beyond the Gulf. Egyptian authorities reported drone strikes on two natural gas vessels operating off the country’s coast.
In Yemen, the Iran-aligned Houthis have escalated attacks on commercial shipping and Saudi-linked energy assets around the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The group has sought to enforce what it calls a naval blockade on vessels passing through the waterway, raising fresh concerns over shipping costs and insurance premiums.
The Bab el-Mandeb is one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints, linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and carrying millions of barrels of crude and refined products each day.
The Red Sea disruptions come as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz also remains well below normal levels.
Elsewhere, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels last week to the lowest level since 2018, defying expectations of a 700,000-barrel rise and reinforcing expectations of tighter near-term supplies in the world’s largest oil consumer.
Gasoline inventories were virtually unchanged at 211.3 million barrels despite stronger implied demand, while distillate fuel inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.1 million barrels.
(Ayushman Ojha contributed reporting)
