NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / – Oil futures surged by more than 4% on Friday. Brent crude crossed the $88 per barrel threshold, with both key benchmarks reaching their highest closing levels in over a month. Brent contracts gained $3.87, or 4.59%, settling at $88.10 a barrel. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate increased by $3.54, or 4.48%, ending at $82.49. Both indices experienced roughly 16% growth over the week. Brent recorded its third consecutive weekly rise, while WTI marked its second.
The upward movement coincided with another significant drop in commercial vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. This vital waterway remains a crucial corridor for global oil and gas shipments. On Thursday, only three commodity ships passed through, marking the lowest daily count since May. On Wednesday, eleven vessels navigated the strait, compared to an average of 125 before the escalation of conflict. No very large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers crossed for the second consecutive day.
Throughout the week, the United States and Iran intensified attacks on infrastructure, while restrictions again curtailed shipping activity in the Gulf. Iraq temporarily halted oil exports at its Basra terminal following a drone attack on a tanker. The loading operations resumed later. Two large crude carriers, each holding approximately 2 million barrels, were observed outside Hormuz after departing earlier in the week. These developments occurred as crude futures experienced their largest daily gains of the week, with energy prices climbing across global markets.
Hormuz vessel traffic declines as oil prices rise
The International Energy Agency reported a 6.5 million barrel per day increase in Gulf oil exports in June, totaling 16.1 million barrels daily. Despite this rise, exports remained below the 24 million barrels per day level seen prior to the conflict. The monthly increase was primarily driven by crude and condensate shipments. Gulf production increased by 3.5 million barrels per day but still lagged 11.4 million barrels behind previous levels. These figures indicated only a partial recovery before the latest decline in vessel traffic.
The IEA also noted that global oil inventories grew by 21 million barrels in June, marking their first monthly increase in four months. Waterborne oil stocks rose by 117 million barrels, while onshore inventories decreased by about 96 million. Government releases contributed 44 million barrels to the onshore decline. Exports of refined products and liquefied petroleum gas from the Gulf remained below half of pre-conflict levels, whereas crude shipments approached nearly 75% of earlier rates.
Weekly increases boost both benchmarks
The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that Brent spot prices averaged $85 a barrel in June, down $22 from May. Prices dipped below $70 on July 1 but recovered during the first half of July. The agency estimated that global oil inventories decreased by 5.1 million barrels a day during the second quarter. It also noted that production shut-ins averaged 8.3 million barrels daily in June, after peaking at 11.2 million in May.
Friday’s settlement left Brent $12.09 above its July 10 close of $76.01. WTI ended $11.08 higher than its $71.41 close from the previous week. These figures represented weekly gains of approximately 15.9% for Brent and 15.5% for WTI. Energy stocks were the only major U.S. market sector to close higher on Friday. Both crude contracts finished near their intraday highs, concluding a week characterized by significant price increases and slowed tanker movement through Hormuz.