Oil Steadies after Rising on Mideast Escalation Fears
6/18 8:32 AM
Oil Steadies after Rising on Mideast Escalation Fears
Karim Bastati
DTN Analyst
VIENNA (DTN) -- Oil futures steadied Wednesday morning after jumping more
than 4% in the previous trading session as the Israel-Iran war shows no signs
of cooling and U.S. President Trump called for the Iranian regime's
"unconditional surrender", spurring fears of U.S. involvement in the conflict.
NYMEX-traded WTI for July rose $0.50 bbl to trade near $75.34 bbl, and ICE
Brent for August delivery gained $0.31 bbl to $76.76 bbl.
July RBOB gasoline futures added $0.0285 to $2.3004 gallon, and the
front-month ULSD futures contract advanced $0.0206 to trade near $2.5257 gallon.
The U.S. dollar index softened by 0.184 points to 98.210.
Iranian officials have threatened retaliation should the United States
engage militarily, raising escalation fears. The Iranian military and their
regional proxies could target U.S. bases in the region in response to U.S.
involvement.
Oil prices have rocketed in reaction to the conflict, but the macroeconomic
backdrop remained bearish. U.S. retail sales last month were down 0.9% from
April, close to twice the expected decline and the biggest monthly drop since
January, Census Bureau data showed. U.S. industrial production shrank 0.2%
month-on-month in May, according to the Federal Reserve Bank. The International
Energy Agency, meanwhile, again downgraded their oil demand growth forecasts in
their latest monthly oil report published Tuesday, and noted global oil
inventories "surging" last month.
(c) Copyright 2025 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.