FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Update: WTI Oil Falls as Renewed Iran-US Fighting Keeps Persian Gulf Supply Disrupted

By

(Updates prices in the second paragraph.)

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil closed lower Friday as fighting between the U.S. and Iran continues, while some ships continue to move out of the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz, boosting supply.

WTI crude oil for August delivery closed down $0.67, or 0.9%, to settle at $71.41, while September Brent oil was last seen down $0.42, or 0.6%, to $75.88.

The drop comes as Iran and the U.S. renew hostilities, though fighting eased overnight. The apparent end to a ceasefire agreement reached last month is continuing to keep ships trapped in the Persian Gulf since the Feb. 28 start to the war. Only 15 ships moved through the Strait of Hormuz yesterday, according to hormuzstraitmonitor.com, leaving 280 vessels still waiting to move through the waterway.

However enough ships left the region since the mid-June ceasefire agreement to ease supply worries. In its monthly Oil Market Report, the International Energy Agency said June oil inventories rose for the first time since the start of the war as shipping through the Strait surged following the ceasefire.

"As an armada of tankers set sail for refining hubs further afield, global observed oil inventories in June rose for the first time since the outbreak of the war. Oil on water swelled by 117 mb (million barrels), far outpacing continued drawdowns in onshore stocks of some 96 mb, including 44 mb of OECD government reserves," the agency said.

The IEA said global oil supply rose by 4.1-million barrels per day in June following the release of some Persian Gulf supply to 98.8-million bpd. Demand, which dropped by 4.8-million bpd in the second quarter, is expected to continue to contract in the third quarter on light supply and high prices, though is expected to rise by 1.2-million bpd in the fourth quarter.

Related Articles

Sectors

Sector Update: Energy Stocks Fall Late Afternoon

Energy stocks were lower late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index falling 1.2% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) shedding 1.4%.The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index dropped 1.4%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index decreased 0.4%.Crude oil prices fell in the aftermath of Washington degrading Iran's capability to attack commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command overnight hit 90 Iranian military targets, according to its social media post on X, after striking 80 on the previous night following Iran's attacks on three commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint for about a fifth of global crude oil flows.Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 2.5% to $71.72 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract dropped 2.6% to $75.97 a barrel.US natural gas stocks rose by 61 billion cubic feet in the week ended July 3, larger than the 58 billion cubic foot increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and following an increase of 87 billion cubic feet in the previous week.Henry Hub natural gas futures slumped 6.3% to $3.01 per 1 million BTU.In corporate news, Chevron (CVX) is poised to post Q2 earnings above Wall Street's expectations on stronger crude prices and improved refining margins, UBS Securities said in a note. Chevron shares were down 1.4%.Bloom Energy (BE) shares were up 2.5% after the company rejected claims made in a short seller report as "false and misleading." Hunterbrook Media's report alleged Bloom Energy relies on Chinese suppliers for scandium, a key material used in its fuel cells.BP (BP) will push decision-making closer to the "frontline" and seek greater financial accountability and discipline, said Meg O'Neill, the British energy giant's new CEO, on LinkedIn. BP shares fell 1.6%.TotalEnergies (TTE) shares were shedding 0.7% after the company said it sold its 170-megawatt distributed solar portfolio in seven European countries to Amarenco and AMPYR Distributed Energy.

$BE$BP$CVX$TTE
Sectors

Sector Update: Financial Stocks Higher Late Afternoon

Financial stocks were advancing in late Thursday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index rising 1% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) adding 0.9%.The Philadelphia Housing Index was up 1%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) increased 0.2%.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was rising 1.5% to $63,149, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries fell 3 basis points to 4.539%.In economic news, US initial jobless claims fell sequentially to 215,000 in the week ended July 4 from an upwardly revised 217,000, compared with 217,000 in a Bloomberg survey.The pace of US existing home sales fell 2.4% to a 4.09 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in June from an upwardly-revised 4.19 million annual rate in May, compared with a rise to 4.20 million in a Bloomberg survey, data from the National Association of Realtors released Thursday showed.In sector news, Kalshi is in discussions with US regulators to expand its perpetual futures offerings beyond cryptocurrencies into asset classes including metals, foreign exchange, and energy, Reuters reported, citing Chief Risk Officer Udesh Jha.In corporate news, Blackstone (BX) and TPG (TPG) are looking to sell Hologic's surgical business for more than $4 billion, the Financial Times reported. Blackstone shares rose 3.1%, and TPG added 2%.Barclays (BCS) is preparing to sell about $875 million of debt financing to support Blackstone and Tinicum's acquisition of UK aerospace supplier Senior, Bloomberg reported. Barclays shares gained 1.8%.Mara (MARA) has agreed to buy a powered land site in Matagorda County, Texas, from HIF USA, the firms said. The site will be developed via Mara's partnership with Starwood Digital Ventures as a campus for Bitcoin mining and high-performance computing workloads. Shares jumped past 10%.CME's (CME) attempt to list a self-certified, round-the-clock crude oil futures contract has been blocked by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the regulator said Thursday. CME shares fell 1.6%.

$BX$TPG
Sectors

Sector Update: Healthcare Stocks Softer Late Afternoon

Healthcare stocks were lower late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Healthcare Index shedding 0.5% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) down 0.4%.The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) increased 0.3%.In corporate news, AstraZeneca (AZN) and its partner Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS) said Thursday that a phase 3 trial for eplontersen in people with transthyretin-mediated amyloid cardiomyopathy did not meet the primary efficacy endpoint. AstraZeneca shares fell 5%, and Ionis tumbled 23%.Qiagen (QGEN) is attracting early takeover interest from private equity firms, including EQT AB, Advent and KKR (KKR), with some potential bidders considering offers of at least $50 per share, Bloomberg reported. Qiagen shares jumped 10%.Fate Therapeutics (FATE) shares rose past 5% after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the company's investigational new drug application for FT839, a product candidate to treat autoimmune diseases.MetaVia (MTVA) shares climbed 11% after it said Thursday that all active patients in part 3 of its phase 1 trial for obesity drug candidate DA-1726 have completed dose titration and reached their highest planned doses of 48 mg and 64 mg.

$AZN$FATE$IONS$MTVA$QGEN