Crude oil hovered near $95 per barrel on Thursday after rising for five consecutive sessions, supported by escalating conflicts in the Middle East and Eastern Europe that have intensified concerns over potential supply disruptions. A container ship sank in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday after being struck by unidentified projectiles, while Iran-backed Houthi forces continued to launch missile and drone attacks across Saudi Arabia. An increasing number of oil tankers are now avoiding their usual crude-loading locations, signaling that mounting Iranian attacks on shipping are beginning to disrupt export operations.
At the same time, Russia accused Ukraine of attacking two oil refineries on Wednesday, including the 400,000-barrel-per-day Ryazan facility, in what Moscow claims is a breach of an “energy ceasefire” announced by US President Donald Trump. In the United States, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed that crude inventories fell by 11.1 million barrels last week, the largest weekly drawdown since June 2025.
