FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Update: WTI Oil Rises as Iran and the U.S. Trade Attacks While U.S. Oil Inventories Fall Again

By

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil rose on Wednesday on renewed fighting between the United States and Iran, while a report showed U.S. oil inventories fell for an eighth week.

WTi oil for July delivery closed up US$1.83 to settle at US$90.03 per barrel, while August Brent oil was last seen up US$2.23 to US$93.78.

The rise comes on a fresh clash between the United States and Iran. Iran on Tuesday shot down a U.S. helicopter and the U.S. responded with attacks on Iranian targets. According to the Wall Street Journal, Iran also attacked U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf region, as well as Jordan.

The fighting is lowering hopes for a peace deal between Iran and the United States, leaving the Strait of Hormuz closed to shipping and keeping most oil exports from Persian Gulf nations, which supplied a fifth of daily oil demand, off the market.

In its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook released on Tuesday, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported the closure of the Strait is depleting global inventories, keeping prices high.

"Global oil markets remain highly volatile as very limited shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has caused oil producers in the Middle East to reduce crude oil production by more than 11 million barrels per day (b/d) in May compared with pre-conflict levels. This drop in production has resulted in large global inventory draws to meet demand. Under our assumptions, we expect global oil inventories will fall by an average of 6.3 million b/d in 2Q26 and by 7.6 million b/d in 3Q26," the agency said.

In its weekly survey, the EIA reported U.S. commercial oil inventories fell by 7.2-milllion barrels last week, well above the consensus estimate for a 4.0-million barrel drop among analysts polled by Reuters.

Related Articles

Sectors

Sector Update: Healthcare Stocks Rise Late Afternoon

Healthcare stocks were higher late Tuesday afternoon, with the NYSE Healthcare Index rising 1.6% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) increasing 1.2%.The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) added 1.2%.In corporate news, GSK (GSK) said it signed a definitive agreement Tuesday to acquire Nuvalent (NUVL) for $10.6 billion in cash. GSK shares rose 1%, and Nuvalent surged 39%.Brookdale Senior Living (BKD) has reported May occupancy data in line with bullish comments by the company's management at a recent event and ahead of levels implied in RBC's model for Q2, RBC Capital Markets said in a note. Brookdale shares jumped past 8%.PTC Therapeutics (PTCT) shares climbed 3.3% after Citigroup upgraded the company's stock to buy and raised its price target to $108.Eli Lilly (LLY) signed a collaboration and licensing deal worth over $1 billion with AlzeCure Pharma for global rights to its investigative candidate for Alzheimer's disease. Lilly shares were down 0.4%.

$BKD$GSK$LLY$NUVL$PTCT
Sectors

Sector Update: Financial Stocks Advance Late Afternoon

Financial stocks were higher in late Tuesday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index increasing 0.9% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) adding 0.6%.The Philadelphia Housing Index climbed 3.4%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) rose 2.1%.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was falling 2.3% to $61,906.8, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was decreasing 2.2 basis points to 4.53%.In economic news, the US trade deficit narrowed in April as export growth outpaced an increase in imports, government data showed Tuesday. The goods and services deficit narrowed $700 million to $55.9 billion in April from March on a seasonally adjusted basis, the US Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis said. The consensus was for a deficit of $56.1 billion in a Bloomberg survey.The pace of US existing home sales rose by 3.2% to a 4.17 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in May from 4.04 million in April, compared with a smaller expected increase to a 4.07 million rate in a survey compiled by Bloomberg, data from the National Association of Realtors showed.Redbook US same-store sales rose by 9.1% from a year earlier in the week ended June 6 after a 9.0% year-over-year increase in the previous week, with seasonal buying accounting for a smaller share of activity than in recent weeks.In corporate news, Payoneer Global (PAYO) shares surged 25% after Reuters reported the company is in advanced talks to be acquired by Canadian payments firm Nuvei for about $2.7 billion, including Payoneer's cash, which implies an enterprise value of about $2.3 billion.JPMorgan Chase (JPM) plans to launch AI agents later this year that are capable of working autonomously for far longer than current versions, CNBC reported, citing an interview with Chief Analytics Officer Derek Waldron. JPMorgan shares rose 0.3%.Truist Financial (TFC) is preparing to expand its presence in the $1.8 trillion commercial mortgage-backed securities servicing market, with its Grandbridge Real Estate Capital unit planning to bid for master-servicer roles in upcoming transactions, Bloomberg reported. Truist shares added 0.8%.Klarna (KLAR) has introduced US savings accounts with FDIC insurance, no minimum balance or fees, and interest rates above 3% annual percentage yield. Klarna shares were 0.2% lower.

$JPM$KLAR$PAYO$TFC
Sectors

Sector Update: Consumer Stocks Higher Late Afternoon

Consumer stocks were rising late Tuesday afternoon, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) advancing 0.9% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) adding 0.3%.In sector news, Redbook US same-store sales rose by 9.1% from a year earlier in the week ended June 6 after a 9.0% year-over-year increase in the previous week, with seasonal buying accounting for a smaller share of activity than in recent weeks.In corporate news, Stellantis (STLA) is recalling nearly 790,000 Jeep Wranglers and nearly 290,000 Jeep Gladiators due to issues with the Electric Hydraulic Power Steering Pump that, in some cases, can cause overheating of combustible materials leading to a fire, according to a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recall report. Stellantis shares were down 0.3%.J.M. Smucker (SJM) reported better-than-expected fiscal Q4 results on Tuesday, while the food producer's full-year earnings outlook came in above Wall Street's estimates at the midpoint. Its shares jumped past 8%.United Natural Foods (UNFI) shares fell more than 11% after the company reported fiscal Q3 net sales below Wall Street's estimates on Tuesday. The food distributor also logged double-digit declines in conventional and retail sales.Academy Sports and Outdoors (ASO) raised its full-year outlook on Tuesday as fiscal Q1 earnings topped market estimates, but the company expects inflationary pressures to continue weighing on consumer spending for the rest of 2026. Its shares were down 2.4%.

$ASO$SJM$STLA$UNFI