Heating oil futures jumped more than 7% to above $3.96 per gallon, the highest level since June 2022, as mounting concerns grew that refined product supplies from the Persian Gulf could remain disrupted for an extended period. In his first public statement, new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei declared that the Strait of Hormuz should remain closed, reinforcing expectations of a prolonged supply interruption after multiple tankers were struck by projectiles overnight.
His defiant remarks came amid increasingly intense exchanges between Iran and regional adversaries. Tankers have been unable to load cargoes since the conflict began, effectively sidelining 20% of global seaborne trade and forcing producers to curb output as storage facilities reached capacity. According to the International Energy Agency, the disruption is the largest on record and has prompted a historic release of 400 million barrels from strategic reserves. Even so, traders doubt that these emergency volumes will be sufficient to offset the substantial daily supply shortfall.
