The International Energy Agency’s latest Oil Market Report underscores a deepening imbalance in global oil markets. Despite a sharper-than-expected contraction in demand driven by elevated prices from the ongoing Iran conflict and related disruptions, supply shortfalls have widened even more, producing the tightest near-term balances in years. At the time this article is written, Brent […]
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Geopolitical risks are colliding across multiple theaters in early August 2026, creating a perfect storm for energy markets. The Strait of Hormuz is flaring again, with Iranian loadings collapsing toward zero. Saudi Arabia’s Jazan refinery has been hit by Houthi drones for the second time in weeks. Ukraine continues deep strikes on Russian refining infrastructure, […]
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ENB Pub Note: This article first ran on America Outloud, and we highly recommend subscribing to Ronald Stein and Mike Ariza there. They both have been on the Energy News Beat podcast and are fantastic resources for the energy markets. Worldwide economies run on continuous and uninterruptible electricity and transportation fuels like the following: Jet […]
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The 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis—sparked by U.S.-Israeli operations against Iran beginning in late February and marked by Iranian attacks on shipping, assertions of control, U.S. naval responses and blockades, and sharply reduced tanker traffic—has delivered the largest oil supply disruption on record. At its peak, the effective closure or severe constriction of the waterway, […]
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Iran has ruled out direct negotiations with the United States for now, citing repeated violations of a short-lived interim peace memorandum of understanding signed in June, while President Donald Trump has signaled a patient, restrained approach focused on economic pressure rather than immediate new military action. The standoff continues to leave the Strait of Hormuz—the […]
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Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis claimed a drone strike on Saudi Aramco’s Jazan (also spelled Jizan) refinery on Sunday, August 9, 2026, just two days after the kingdom signed a major trilateral defense pact. Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry reported a fire at a facility within the complex that was extinguished with no injuries. This marks the latest […]
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On August 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sweeping sanctions targeting digital asset exchanges and networks used by the Iranian regime to launder funds, evade sanctions, and support the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other terrorist groups. The action hits two major platforms exploited by […]
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On the night of August 7-8, 2026, Russia and Ukraine exchanged strikes targeting energy infrastructure and civilian areas. Russian forces launched ballistic missiles and drones at the Kyiv region and capital, while Ukrainian forces conducted long-range drone strikes on two Russian oil refineries. Russian strikes hit the Brovary district near Kyiv and areas in the […]
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Citigroup has raised its third-quarter 2026 Brent crude forecast to $80 per barrel from $75, citing the prolonged U.S.-Iran conflict and continued constraints on oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz. The bank left its fourth-quarter 2026 forecast unchanged at $70 per barrel and continues to project an average of $65 per barrel for full-year […]
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On August 7, 2026, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 by a vote of 86-11. The bipartisan measure, renamed in honor of the late South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham—who championed it until his death last month—now heads to the House. The legislation authorizes the president […]
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