Friday, May 22, 2026 | 6:00AM ET Brent (July) $105.31 | WTI (July) $98.44 Brent +2.73 (+2.7%), WTI +2.09 (+2.2%) on the day. Brent down over 3% on the week, WTI down around 6%, as peace deal optimism and disappointment continued to drive sharp intraday swings. Senior Iranian source says gaps with U.S. have narrowed; Rubio says some good signs in talks; uranium stockpile and Hormuz control remain unresolved; Ukraine hits Yaroslavl refinery 700km from border, 11 Russian oil fac

Thursday, May 21, 2026 Brent (July) $107.20 | WTI (July) $100.82 Brent +2.18 (+2.1%), WTI +2.57 (+2.6%), reversing overnight losses after Iran's Supreme Leader issued a directive that uranium must stay in Iran. Record U.S. SPR draw of nearly 10 million barrels last week confirmed by EIA. Iran Supreme Leader rules out uranium removal from country; Iran establishes Persian Gulf Strait Authority with controlled maritime zone; ADNOC CEO says full Hormuz flows not before Q1-Q2 202

Wednesday, May 20, 2026 | 6:30 AM ET Brent (July) $109.00 | WTI (July) $102.14 Brent -2.28 (-2.0%), WTI -2.01 (-1.9%). U.S. crude stocks fell for a fifth straight week per API, EIA data due today. Brent prompt spread around $21 per barrel, well below last month's highs above $35. Trump says war will end very quickly, was an hour from ordering strikes; Vance says significant progress in Iran talks; UK waives sanctions on Russian-origin diesel and jet fuel; three stranded Gulf

Tuesday, May 19, 2026 Brent (July) $111.00 | WTI (July) $103.56 Brent -1.10 (-1.0%),June WTI expires today, July WTI -0.82 (-0.8%) Both contracts hit their highest levels since early May on Monday before reversing on Trump's pause announcement. Trump posts he is holding off a planned Tuesday Iran strike to allow negotiations; Iran's latest proposal includes reparations and U.S. troop withdrawal; record 9.9 million barrel SPR draw brings stockpiles to July 2024 lows; Russia sa

Monday, May 18, 2026 Brent (July) $110.15 | WTI (June) $106.24 Brent session high $112.00, highest since May 5. WTI session high $108.70, highest since April 30. June WTI expires Tuesday. Both contracts up more than 7% last week. Drone strike hits UAE Barakah nuclear power plant; Saudi Arabia intercepts three drones from Iraqi airspace; Trump meeting national security advisers Tuesday on military options; IEA's Birol warns commercial inventories have weeks left; U.S. lets Rus

Friday, May 15, 2026 | 5:45 AM ET Brent (July) $109.64 | WTI (June) $105.27 Brent +3.92 (+3.7%), WTI +4.10 (+4.1%). Brent up 7.8% on the week, WTI up 9.9%. Hormuz daily transits up to roughly 10-30 vessels versus 5-7 recently, still well below the pre-war norm of 140. Trump says patience with Iran running out after Beijing summit; U.S. reportedly rejects Iran's five preconditions; UAE fast-tracks West-East Pipeline to double Fujairah bypass capacity by 2027; India raises reta

Wednesday, May 13, 2026 Brent (July) $108.07 | WTI (June) $102.17 Brent +0.30 (+0.3%), WTI flat. Both benchmarks holding above $100 for the tenth consecutive week. U.S. crude stocks fell for a fourth straight week per API data. IEA declares 2026 global oil supply deficit of 1.78 million bpd, Q2 deficit at 6 million bpd; 14 million bpd shut in, over 1 billion barrels lost; Trump says he does not need China's help to end the war; U.S. April CPI posts largest annual increase in

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 Brent (July) $107.23 | WTI (June) $101.14 Brent +3.02 (+2.9%), WTI +3.07 (+3.1%), extending Monday's 2.8% gains. Hormuz traffic at two to five vessels daily versus roughly 70 in normal times. Trump says ceasefire on life support; OPEC April output at lowest in more than two decades; Aramco CEO warns market recovery could drag into 2027; U.S. sanctions nine companies and three individuals for facilitating Iranian oil shipments to China; Trump-Xi summit Th

Monday, May 11, 2026 Brent (July) $103.78 | WTI (June) $97.66 Brent +2.49 (+2.5%), WTI +2.24 (+2.3%), session highs $105.99 and $100.37. Both contracts down 6% last week on peace deal optimism now reversed. Trump calls Iran's MOU response unacceptable; three crude tankers exit Hormuz with trackers switched off; Trump-Xi summit Wednesday with Iran on agenda; Aramco CEO says world has lost 1 billion barrels, reopening routes not same as normalizing market; Diamondback hedges U.

Wednesday, April 29, 2026 Market Snapshot Brent (June) $114.38 | July Brent $107.23 | WTI (June) $103.25 Brent +3.12 (+3.0%), eighth consecutive daily gain, highest since March 31. June contract expires Thursday. WTI +3.32 (+3.4%), highest since April 13, up seven of the last eight sessions. WSJ reports Trump instructing aides to prepare extended Iran blockade; UAE quits OPEC effective May 1 after nearly 60 years; ADNOC offers customers out-of-Gulf crude loadings for June; AP

Monday, April 27, 2026 | 6:15 AM ET Market Snapshot Brent (July) $100.73 | WTI (June) $95.62 Brent +1.60 (+1.5%), WTI +1.22 (+1.3%). Last week Brent gained 17% and WTI 13%, biggest weekly gains since the war began. Only one oil products tanker entered the Gulf on Sunday per Kpler. Trump tells Iran to call if it wants to negotiate; Iranian FM shuttles to Pakistan, Oman and Russia; Goldman raises Q4 Brent to $90, sees record 11-12 million bpd inventory draw in April; U.S. sanct

Friday, April 24, 2026 Brent(June) $107.00 | WTI (June) $97.41 Brent +1.93 (+1.8%), WTI +1.58 (+1.7%). Brent up 18% on the week, WTI up 15%, second largest weekly gains since the war began. Iran releases footage of commandos boarding cargo ship in Hormuz; Asia crude imports tracking 22% below year-ago levels at 10-year low; diesel and jet fuel output loss estimated at 1-2 million bpd; Trump says he will not set a timetable for ending the conflict. Bottom Line The week's 18% B

Thursday, April 23, 2026 Market Snapshot Brent (June) $103.12 | WTI (June) $94.06 Brent +1.21 (+1.2%), WTI +1.10 (+1.2%). Brent settled above $100 Wednesday for first time in more than two weeks, driven by larger than expected gasoline and distillate draws. U.S. total crude and petroleum product exports hit a record 12.88 million bpd. Iran seizes two ships in Hormuz; U.S. intercepts three Iranian tankers in Asian waters, 29 vessels turned around since blockade began; GPS-enab

Wednesday, April 22, 2026 Market Snapshot Brent (June) $99.00 | WTI (June) $90.12 Brent briefly above $100 after Hormuz gunfire reports before easing, +0.52 (+0.5%) at time of writing. WTI +0.45 (+0.5%). Both contracts up roughly 3% Tuesday. Three container ships hit by gunfire in Hormuz; Trump unilaterally extends ceasefire with no Iranian confirmation; Druzhba pipeline resuming to Hungary and Slovakia after months-long halt; China state refiners selling Nigerian and Ghanaia

Monday, April 20, 2026 Market Snapshot Brent (June) $94.67 | WTI (June) $87.23 Brent +4.29 WTI +4.64, reversing Friday's 9% collapse that followed Iran's "completely open" strait announcement. Hormuz traffic still well below normal despite 20-plus vessel transits Saturday. U.S. seizes Iranian cargo ship Touska; IRGC fires on two tankers attempting Hormuz transit; Iran pulls out of Islamabad talks; ceasefire expiring this week with no second round in sight; Trump renews Russi

*Cornerstone Morning Highlights* _April 17, 2026_ Crude markets are entering a more nuanced phase, where headline-driven optimism around diplomacy is colliding with still-severe physical dislocation. While outright prices have softened on expectations of a potential ceasefire, the underlying supply picture remains structurally tight and increasingly fragmented. The most notable development overnight was evidence that limited flows are still moving through the Strait of Hormuz

Cornerstone Morning Highlights Market Snapshot Brent crude is trading just above $96 this morning, with WTI near $92, as markets attempt to stabilize following the recent pullback from war-driven highs. The tone has clearly shifted over the past 48 hours—from acute supply shock to cautious optimism around diplomacy—yet underlying fundamentals remain anything but normal. Geopolitics: Diplomacy Driving Price, Not Reality The dominant driver of price action continues to be the e

Cornerstone Morning Highlights ________________________________________ Market Snapshot • Brent (Jun): ~$96.13 • WTI (May): ~$92.50 ________________________________________ Top Developments 1. Market Shifts from Crisis to Diplomacy Mode • President Trump signaling “war very close to over” and pushing renewed talks • Second round of negotiations potentially within 48 hours • Market increasingly pricing: o Short-lived disruption o Gradual normalization of flows into May...

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 | 6:30 AM ET ________________________________________ Market Snapshot Brent (June) ~$98.5 | WTI (May) ~$97.0 Brent -0.8%, WTI -2.1% on the day Bottom Line The market is entering a two-track reality: physical disruption remains severe, but financial markets are beginning to price a diplomatic off-ramp. The key shift this morning is not fundamentals—it’s expectations. On one hand: • The U.S. blockade is now operational • Hormuz flows remain heavily impai

Cornerstone Futures Morning Highlights Monday, April 13, 2026 | 6:30 AM ET Market Snapshot Brent (June) $102.00 | WTI (May) $104.00 Brent +7–8%, WTI +8% on the day European gas +9% to $47.7 Heating oil $4.09 Gasoline $3.15 Global risk tone weaker: Stoxx 600 -0.7% | S&P futures -0.6% US 10Y yields +2bps to 4.33% | Dollar +0.3% Bottom Line What changed this morning is not just price—it’s policy escalation. The US decision to move toward a functional blockade of Iranian-linked