Global crude oil futures traded mixed on Thursday, consolidating near six-week highs as escalating geopolitical tensions across the Middle East and persistent maritime bottlenecks in the Strait of Hormuz were tempered by diplomatic signals hinting at potential peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
Global crude oil futures settled approximately 1% higher on Wednesday, consolidating near multi-week highs in a volatile session as escalating naval hostilities in the Persian Gulf and a sharp drawdown in US commercial stockpiles outweighed the dampening effect of alternative regional supply flows.
The scale of the miss marks one of the sharper expectation gaps of the summer, and it came from a familiar pairing: refiners running at full tilt and exporters moving unusually large volumes offshore. Even with the outsized draw, stocks held 1% above their five-year average, meaning the surprise was more about pace than position.
Global crude oil futures surged roughly 5% on Tuesday, extending a sharp multi-session rally to five-week highs as direct US strikes on Iranian targets and tanker attacks in the Strait of Hormuz intensified structural supply disruption risks across core Middle Eastern transit corridors.