Brent Tops $93 After Iran's Rezai Speaks on Hormuz
A day after touching $89.16 for the first time since August, Brent jumped to $93.34 on Wednesday and WTI to $87.68, following remarks by an Iranian official.
Brent crude climbed back above $93 a barrel on Wednesday, just one day after it fell below $90 for the first time since August. In London trading in the afternoon, a barrel changed hands at $93.34, up $1.85 from Tuesday’s close. The US benchmark WTI traded at $87.68, up $1.64 from a day earlier.
How prices moved
Tuesday was a day of losses. Brent touched $89.16 during the session, its first level below $90 since August, and closed the day at $91.49, down 1.17%. The same day, the basket of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) fell $5.71 to $86.02, its first drop below $90 since the end of August.
Key prices over the past two days:
- Brent, Tuesday close: $91.49 (down 1.17%)
- WTI, Tuesday close: $86.04 (down 0.93%)
- Brent, Wednesday morning: about $92.50 (up about 1.1%)
- WTI, Wednesday morning: about $86.70
- Brent, Wednesday afternoon: $93.34
- WTI, Wednesday afternoon: $87.68
According to Reuters data, Brent has lost 21% since the start of November and WTI 17%. Wednesday’s rise therefore recovers only part of what was lost in the first eleven days of the month.
What Mohsen Rezai said
Traders spent Wednesday watching messages from Washington and Tehran about a framework for ending the war. US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he intends to hold off on new attacks on Iran, after appeals from countries in the region, including Qatar, which is mediating the talks. The naval blockade of Iran, he said, remains in place for now.
The answer from Tehran came through Mohsen Rezai, head of Iran’s National Security Council. In an interview with Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen television, he said Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz only once Washington meets its conditions, including lifting the naval blockade. He also ruled out shipping enriched uranium out of the country and called reports about the negotiations fake news. Washington, for its part, insists that nuclear issues must be part of the peace talks. Tehran maintains that its nuclear program serves peaceful purposes only.
New attacks on commercial ships in the strait also pushed prices higher. UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo described what the message from Tehran changed in the market:
The new message from Tehran reduced hopes that tensions could ease in the short term, so oil prices are rising again.
Why even a deal would not restore oil flows at once
Even if the two sides reach an agreement, tanker traffic through the strait would not return overnight. LSEG analysts warned in a note published Tuesday that oil could flow in larger volumes only after the mines are cleared. They named insurance costs and the willingness of shipping companies to take on the risk as further obstacles.
Assessments of the outcome are not aligned either. Fereidun Fesharaki, chairman of the consultancy FGE, judged the gap between the sides too wide to bridge: Washington demands that enriched nuclear material be taken out of Iran, while Tehran will not allow Hormuz to operate as freely as it did before the war. By his estimate, Trump is choosing between declaring victory and going back to war, with a deadline of about two weeks for that decision. ING strategists Ewa Manthey and Warren Patterson note that the market kept trimming its geopolitical premium through Tuesday, but that prices remain sensitive to developments in the Middle East.
How far Brent is from its wartime peak
At around $92.50, Brent is about 29% below its wartime high of $130, reached in March and April. At the same time, it is about 50% above its level at the start of 2026, when a barrel traded near $60. In other words, Wednesday’s rise does not change the picture: oil is cheaper than at the height of the conflict, but still much more expensive than before it.
