Crude oil is nearing $80/bbl as Middle East war fears intensify

Brent Crude is nearing $80 a barrel amid fears of elevated conflict in the Middle East.

Brent Crude futures (CO1:COM) are up $1.23, or 1.57%, to $79.28 a barrel early Monday. Also, WTI crude futures (CL1:COM) are up $1.25, or 1.69%, to $75.63.

Las week, Brent oil (CO1:COM) rose more than 8% and WTI Crude oil (CL1:COM) 9.1%.

It was the steepest weekly jump since March 2023, driven by fears of war escalations in the Middle East – on the back of reports that Israel could strike Iran’s oil industry – and possible disruptions to oil exports, such as LNG shipments.

ANZ Research said in a note that they believe the immediate impact on supply will be “relatively small. We see a direct attack on Iran’s oil facilities as the least likely response among Israel’s options.”

OPEC+ should start raising production in December after years of cutting due to weaker global demand. The organization said it has enough oil capacity to offset Israel knocking out Iranian supply, as long as Iran does not retaliate.

Bill Baruch, founder and president of Blue Line Futures, said that, for now, companies like Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX), and Shell (SHEL) will be “clear beneficiaries” due to their limited exposure to the Middle East. Today, the companies are up 0.83%, 0.70%, and 1.53%, respectively.

The ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF (UCO) is also up 3.02% to $29.67.

On the other hand, the ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF (SCO) is down 2.99% to $16.56.