Middle East Archives - Page 2 of 6

Oil extends losses, WTI crude falls below $70 for first time since early March

June 24, 2026

(Investing) – Oil prices extended losses on Wednesday, retreating for a third straight session as signs of a gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and improving U.S.-Iran relations eased fears of a prolonged disruption to Middle East energy supplies. At 09:43 ET (13:43 GMT), Brent crude futures expiring in September, the global oil benchmark, slipped 4% to $73.71 a barrel. Notably, U.S. West

The Fragmenting Barrel – Part II: Thomas Petrie, energy geopolitics, and the emerging hydrocarbon realignment

June 18, 2026

(Oil & Gas360) By Greg Barnett, MBA – If Matt Simmons helped explain the growing engineering complexity beneath the world’s oil reservoirs, Thomas A. Petrie spent decades explaining something equally important above ground: oil is never just a commodity. It is capital, power, diplomacy, security, industrialization, and national survival operating simultaneously. In Following Oil, Petrie chronicled how energy systems reorganize

Vitol executive warns West is ‘asleep at the wheel’ on oil supply crisis

June 3, 2026

(World Oil) – Vitol’s top executive in the Middle East said that many Western governments still aren’t reckoning with the oil supply crunch that’s rippling around the world due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. “In Europe and I think in the U.S., everyone is kind of asleep at the wheel and just carrying on life as normal,” Tom

TotalEnergies made Middle East oil mega-trades after noticing US Navy buildup in Gulf in February, CEO says

May 28, 2026

(BOE Report) – French oil major TotalEnergies made the decision to buy large amounts of Middle East crude in March after its traders noticed the U.S. Navy amassing ships near the Gulf in February, its CEO told French newspaper Le Figaro in an interview published on Thursday. “Our oil traders — and it’s their job — noticed that the U.S. Navy was

Hormuz shutdown sends capital flooding back into renewables

May 26, 2026

(Oil Price) – Concerns about energy security and the push in many countries to boost electrification to replace road transportation fuels are making clean energy investments hot again. As the Middle East crisis and the still closed Strait of Hormuz forces governments into action, renewable stocks and markets are poised for a rebound from institutional investors and hedge funds after

Three supertankers carrying 6 million barrels exit Strait of Hormuz

May 20, 2026

(Oil Price) – Three commercial supertankers carrying a combined 6 million barrels of Middle East crude oil have successfully exited the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reports. The vessels departed the strategic waterway on Wednesday, after being stranded inside the Persian Gulf for over two months, lending hope to an end to the closure of the strait. The crude cargoes were

The Gray Swan Above the Strait: Power, leverage, and the illusion of control in Hormuz

May 13, 2026

(Oil & Gas 360) By Greg Barnett, MBA – If the first Gray Swan resides beneath Iran’s tanks and inside its reservoirs, the second flies openly above the Strait of Hormuz. This is the domain of leverage rather than logistics, of influence rather than infrastructure. It is where diplomacy, energy flows, and great‑power competition intersect—and where markets persistently mistake management

IEA revises 2026 forecast: Oil deficit widens as Iran war cuts production

May 13, 2026

(Oil Price) – Global oil demand is set to exceed supply in the current year amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, reversing previous projections of a surplus. According to the May 2026 Oil Market Report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), global oil supply is projected to fall by 3.9 million bpd across 2026, with ~10.5 million bpd of Gulf

Can the world really move on from coal?

May 12, 2026

(By Oil & Gas 360) – Coal has been written off many times before. Each time, it stayed. Today, the conversation is returning with more urgency. Climate targets, investor pressure, and policy commitments continue pushing toward a future with less coal. But the real question is no longer whether coal use should decline. The question is whether the world is

Oil extends gains after Trump says Iran ceasefire on “life support”

May 12, 2026

(Investing) – Oil prices climbed on Tuesday, extending gains of nearly 3% in the previous session, after U.S. President Donald Trump said a fragile ceasefire with Iran was on “life support,” denting hopes for an imminent peace agreement. As of 09:46 ET (13:46 GMT), Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 3.6% to $107.96 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate

OPEC oil output falls to lowest level in over two decades

May 11, 2026

(Investing) – OPEC crude production dropped by 830,000 barrels per day in April to 20.04 million bpd, marking the lowest output in more than 20 years. April’s production level represents the lowest OPEC output since at least 2000, excluding membership changes, and falls below the levels seen during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 when demand collapsed. The decline came as the

IEA: Tight gas markets will last through 2030

May 7, 2026

(Oil Price) – The war in Iran and the subsequent loss of LNG supply from the Middle East are altering the medium-term outlook of global natural gas balances, with tighter markets set to last longer than previously expected, a senior official at the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday. The Middle East crisis has resulted, so far, in the loss

Premium Content