WTI crude oil futures hovered around $66 per barrel on Friday, near a six‑month high and on track for a weekly gain of about 5%. Prices were buoyed after US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited military strike on Iran and warned Tehran it had no more than 15 days to reach a nuclear agreement. At the same time, the US is carrying out its largest military buildup in the Middle East since 2003, heightening fears of a wider regional conflict.
Iran, which produces more than 3 million barrels of oil per day—around 3% of global supply and primarily exported to China—also has the capacity to threaten traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy corridor. Additional support for oil came from a rally in equities after the US Supreme Court struck down Trump’s tariffs. Bullish sentiment was further reinforced by government data showing US crude inventories fell by 9 million barrels last week, the sharpest drawdown since early September.
