Brent crude climbed to $106.83 a barrel on Thursday, its highest level since May 19, after U.S. Central Command said it destroyed five Iranian oil tankers this week. The strikes follow an earlier round on Sept. 5, and the weekly U.S. inventory report, delayed by a federal holiday, has yet to capture their impact.
Five Tankers Hit In Two Days
Brent rose 5.6% on the day and is up 11.7% since Sept. 2, when it settled at $95.63. U.S. Central Command said on Sept. 8 its forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the previous two days. The command's release names the M/T Kaviz, M/T Charminar, M/T Horizon 1, M/T Riesco and M/T Derya, placing four of the strikes in the Gulf of Oman and one near Kharg Island. Crews were directed to abandon ship before the vessels were hit, and the release does not mention the Strait of Hormuz.
A separate release on Sept. 5 describes three earlier tanker strikes.
Maritime Advisory Renewed, Not New
The U.S. Maritime Administration published advisory 2026-011 on Sept. 9, warning that Iran continues to threaten and conduct strikes on commercial vessels transiting the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman. The advisory replaced 2026-004, which expired the same day, so it is a scheduled six-month renewal rather than a response to this week's strikes.
Inventory Data Still Lags The Strikes
The Energy Information Administration's Weekly Petroleum Status Report for the week ending Sept. 4 was due to publish at noon ET Thursday, delayed from Wednesday by the Sept. 7 federal holiday. The most recent available report, covering the week ending Aug. 28, recorded commercial crude inventories down 4.5 million barrels to 424.5 million — a snapshot that predates both rounds of tanker strikes.
Oil Move Sits Beneath Wider Market Reaction
The Brent surge sat beneath a jump in Federal Reserve rate-hike odds to 64% after the August producer price reading. It also sat beneath a 10-year Treasury yield reaching 4.92%, its highest since Oct. 25, 2023.
Source: The Defiant
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