Business & Markets
Brent oil falls more than 5 percent after volatile trading
Brent North Sea crude, the benchmark international oil contract, fell more than five percent on Friday as traders assessed the effect of fresh Middle East attacks on global crude supplies. Brent dropped to $95.61 a barrel after rising above $100 on Thursday. West Texas Intermediate, the main US oil contract, fell 4.1 percent to $88.40 a barrel.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at trading platform IG, said oil prices had advanced all week before running into profit taking.
Crude futures had risen sharply on Thursday after Yemen's Houthi rebels struck oil tankers in the Red Sea, which the report said could open a new front in the US-Iran conflict. US President Donald Trump threatened the Iran-backed fighters with "major military punishment".
The United States launched fresh strikes on Iran on Friday, but markets took some relief from signs that some ships were still able to pass through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a key route into the Red Sea. A Houthi spokesman said on Friday that the rebels were not blocking traffic through the strait. The report said the statement followed the rebels' declaration this week of a maritime embargo on their foe Saudi Arabia.
Update
Brent North Sea crude fell to $95.61 a barrel after rising above $100 on Thursday.
West Texas Intermediate fell 4.1 percent to $88.40 a barrel.
Chris Beauchamp of IG said oil prices had run into profit taking after advancing all week.
The report linked Thursday's crude-price jump to Houthi strikes on oil tankers in the Red Sea.
US President Donald Trump threatened the Iran-backed Houthi fighters with major military punishment, according to the report.
A Houthi spokesman said the rebels were not blocking traffic through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait after declaring a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia.
Source note: AFP news report published on 24 July 2026 at 15:52:34 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The report says traders were weighing the impact of fresh Middle East attacks on world crude supplies, so the full supply effect was not presented as settled.
Source
AFP news report published on .