Crude oil prices slipped back below $98 a barrel on Wednesday after briefly touching $100 in a highly volatile trading session. The market is coming under pressure from rising crude exports out of the Middle East, where producers have stepped up shuttle shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman. Tanker-tracking data show that seaborne flows from the region have now exceeded pre-war levels.
Saudi Arabia’s crude exports climbed 7.9% in August, reaching their highest level since March. At the same time, Russia is preparing to send its first diesel cargo to the United States on Thursday under an agreement between Presidents Trump and Putin. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington is also exploring cooperation with India’s Reliance Industries to refine Western energy supplies.
Nonetheless, geopolitical tensions across the Middle East remain elevated, and record-high freight rates in the Persian Gulf continue to lend support to crude prices, limiting the extent of the recent pullback.
