Global oil prices rose on Tuesday, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude exceeding $110 per barrel and Brent crude reaching a five-month high. The price movements occurred as traders monitored reports of maritime incidents in the Middle East and as front-month U.S. futures contracts approached their expiration date.
By 7:38 a.m. ET, front-month U.S. WTI crude oil futures for November delivery had increased by 6.58% to trade at approximately $110.48 per barrel. The contracts were set to expire on Tuesday. The gains put WTI futures on track for their ninth consecutive session of increases, representing a monthly rise of nearly 20%.
Global benchmark Brent crude futures for December delivery also climbed, trading 1.94% higher at $111.67 per barrel, a price not seen since May.
Market activity has been influenced by developments in the Middle East. According to data from the ship tracking firm Kpler, at least 18 commercial vessels have been targeted in the Strait of Hormuz over the past two weeks.
On Tuesday, Iran’s state-affiliated Tasnim news agency reported a statement from the country’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. The statement said two oil tankers had hit mines laid by its naval unit in the strait.
In a separate report, Tasnim quoted Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei, who stated at a weekly news conference that Tehran would respond to any American strike.
These events follow comments made earlier in the month by U.S. President Donald Trump, who stated that American forces would not initiate an attack on Iran before the midterm elections scheduled for Nov. 3.
Tamas Varga, an analyst at PVM Oil Associates, provided commentary on the market conditions in an email to CNBC. He described the strength in WTI prices ahead of the contract’s expiration as “a sign of tightness in the global crude oil market.”
Varga attributed the price movement to several factors, including “falling export volumes from the Middle East as tanker attacks and Houthi strikes on Saudi oil infrastructure intensify.”
He also pointed to a U.S. decision to exempt certain vessels from sanctions, which he said could lower freight rates and make U.S. crude grades more competitive as replacements for Middle Eastern oil. Varga added that U.S. commercial oil inventories were expected to show a decline for the previous week.
