NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / – On Friday, oil prices surged by more than 4%. Brent crude surpassed $88 a barrel, with both major benchmarks hitting their highest closes in over a month. Brent futures increased by $3.87, or 4.59%, settling at $88.10 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate rose by $3.54, or 4.48%, to $82.49. Both contracts experienced approximately 16% growth over the week. Brent recorded its third consecutive weekly rise, while WTI marked its second.
The upward movement occurred amid another sharp decline in commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. This vital waterway remains a key route for global oil and gas shipments. Only three cargo vessels traversed the strait on Thursday, marking the lowest daily count since May. On Wednesday, eleven vessels passed through, compared to an average of 125 daily before the conflict. No very large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers crossed for the second consecutive day.
Throughout the week, the U.S. and Iran intensified attacks on infrastructure, while restrictions once again curtailed Gulf shipping activity. Iraq temporarily halted oil loadings at its Basra terminal following a drone strike on a tanker. Loadings later resumed. Two large crude carriers, each with around 2 million barrels capacity, appeared outside Hormuz after departing the Gulf earlier in the week. These developments coincided with the largest daily gains of the week in crude futures and a rise in energy prices across global markets.
Decline in Hormuz Traffic as Crude Prices Rise
The International Energy Agency reported that Gulf region oil exports increased by 6.5 million barrels per day in June, reaching a total of 16.1 million barrels daily. Despite this increase, exports remained below the pre-conflict level of 24 million barrels per day. Most of the monthly rise was driven by crude and condensate shipments. Gulf production grew by 3.5 million barrels per day but still lagged 11.4 million barrels behind previous levels. These figures show only a partial recovery prior to the recent decline in vessel traffic.
The IEA also noted that global oil inventories rose by 21 million barrels in June, marking their first monthly increase in four months. Waterborne oil inventories increased by 117 million barrels, while onshore stocks decreased by approximately 96 million barrels. Government releases accounted for 44 million barrels of the onshore drop. Exports of refined products and liquefied petroleum gas from the Gulf remained below half of pre-conflict levels, whereas crude flows approached about 75% of their earlier rates.
Weekly Increases Propel Both Benchmarks
The U.S. Energy Information Administration stated 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 per day in the second quarter. It also reported that production shut-ins averaged 8.3 million barrels per day in June, down from a peak of 11.2 million in May.
Friday’s settlement left Brent $12.09 above its July 10 close of $76.01. WTI finished $11.08 above its $71.41 close from one week earlier. These changes resulted in weekly gains of approximately 15.9% for Brent and 15.5% for WTI. Energy shares were the only major U.S. stock sector to close higher on Friday. Both oil contracts ended near their session highs, wrapping up a week characterized by substantial price increases and decreased tanker activity through Hormuz.