Brent oil price falls amid escalated US‑Iran attacks in the Middle East

Oil benchmark prices slipped on Thursday as Middle‑East tensions intensified. Brent crude fell 0.85% to $84.23 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate dropped 0.82% to $78.95, keeping both contracts near their highest levels of the month.

The decline came after a fresh round of strikes by the United States on Iranian targets and a retaliatory Iranian missile barrage against U.S. facilities in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain. Iranian officials warned the Houthi rebels could disrupt Red Sea oil routes if the U.S. expands operations, while the strategic Strait of Hormuz remains closed, raising fears of simultaneous interruptions to the two main Middle‑East export corridors.

In parallel, U.S. wholesale inflation eased in June as energy prices fell 6.4%, pulling the Producer Price Index down 0.3% month‑over‑month. The dip follows a brief easing of hostilities that allowed more oil to transit the Strait of Hormuz.

Venezuelan crude shipments to the United States surged 40% to an average of 675,000 barrels per day, the highest in nine weeks and cementing Venezuela’s role as the U.S.’s second‑largest crude supplier for a twelfth consecutive week.

Global equity markets sold off and the U.S. dollar index rose as investors reacted to the heightened geopolitical risk and lingering concerns over artificial‑intelligence spending.