traded above $101 a barrel on Wednesday morning following the attacks by the Houthis on Saudi sites and amid concerns about the possible impact of a hurricane on the oil producing regions in the US.
At 10.02 am on Wednesday, December Brent oil futures were at $101.58 up by 0.99 per cent, and November crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $90.22, up by 0.87 per cent.
October crude oil futures were trading at ₹8698 on during the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹8628, up by 0.81 per cent, and November futures were trading at ₹8628 against the previous close of ₹8558, up by 0.82 per cent.
US National Hurricane Center said that a storm forming in the Gulf of Mexico would become the first Atlantic hurricane of 2026 within two days.
This hurricane is likely hit the regions where the oil and gas producing facilities are located. Reports said that offshore areas in the Gulf in the storm’s path produce 15 per cent of US crude oil and 5 per cent of its natural gas.
According to the Saudi Arabia’s aviation authority, airports in Jazan and Najran were targeted in two attacks on Monday evening. This follows major offensive by the Yemeni government to retake the territory from the Houthis.
The Energy Minister of Saudi Arabia Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday that the oil supply had been rising as the East-West pipeline hit 5.8 million barrels a day.
In their Commodities Feed for Wednesday, Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy of ING Think, and Ewa Manthey, Commodities Strategist, said the oil market traded under pressure for much of the session on Tuesday, with ICE Brent trading down towards $97 a barrel. However, with supply risks from the Persian Gulf still very real — with continued attacks on ships — the market still managed to settle above $100 a barrel.
“There is a clear tug-of-war at the moment between improving supply from the region and lingering threats to supply. Clearly, it’s looking as though the only way to see prices trade sustainably lower is for lingering risks to be addressed. For now, the market is likely to remain nervous to any potential supply disruptions,” they said.
October natural gas futures were trading at ₹303.10 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹301.20, up by 0.63 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), October jeera contracts were trading at ₹24120 in the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹23815, up by 1.28 per cent.
October castorseed futures were trading at ₹7863 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹7883, down by 0.25 per cent.