New Delhi, Oct 17: Brent crude touched $110 a barrel for the first time since May as hopes for near‑term supply relief faded and traders increased bets on further price gains. The Brent crude stood at 109.69, up 3.56 per cent from the previous close. The benchmark had climbed 3.7 per cent in a session marked by renewed conflict in major export regions that tightened an already fragile supply outlook.
Iran‑backed Houthi rebels continuing missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia impacted the outlook, while Russia and Ukraine also attacked each other’s energy infrastructure. US lawmakers on Friday introduced a bill to block a proposed deal with Mocow to buy several hundred million barrels of diesel from Russian reserves.
Lawmakers expressed opposition to the move seen as potentially bolstering Moscow’s war finances. Geopolitical risks escalated after reports of a strike on Russia’s Ryazan refinery that led to a suspension of operations Further, US President Donald Trump has declined to rule out using GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, dubbed “Mother of all Bombs,” on Iran after the November 3 election, according to a report by Newsmax.
Brent crude price is expected to reach $90 a barrel in December 2026, up 6 per cent from the previous forecast of $85, another report has said, citing ongoing supply‑side risks from the West Asia conflict that are keeping a hefty risk premium in time spreads.
The December 2026 forecast surged because of “ongoing downside risks to supply likely to slow the moderation in the time spreads risk premium—which we estimate at just over $20 today,” the report from Goldman Sachs said. When the West Asia war started in February-end, Brent crude stood around $70/bbl, which jumped to over $125/bbl as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a transit point for nearly 20 per cent of world’s oil shipments, was disrupted. Gradual reopening led to moderation in crude prices to pre-war days before oil climbed back to test the $110/bbl mark.
IANS