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Asia midday crude futures: Ice Brent extends gains
Ice Brent futures rose in early Asian trading hours, after the Yemeni Houthi militant group's maritime ban on Saudi Arabia led vessels to turn away from the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
The Ice front-month September Brent contract was at $92.21/bl at 04:00 GMT, higher by $1.20/bl from its settlement on 21 July, when it ended $1.79/bl higher.
The Nymex front-month September crude contract was at $85.35/bl, up by $1.01/bl from its settlement on 21 July, when it ended $1.86/bl higher.
Several large tankers have turned away from passing Yemen's coastline or the Bab el-Mandeb strait in the Red Sea on 21 July, according to AIS data. Three are very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and one an Aframax. All had either loaded, or were going to load, crude at Saudi Arabian Red Sea ports.
The VLCC Xin Long Yang loaded Saudi crude at Yanbu on 18 July and was destined for Qinzhou, China, AIS data indicate. But it turned around before approaching the Bab el-Mandeb strait. VLCCs New Prime and Xin Tong Yang were ballasting towards Yanbu before they turned around.
This comes a day after the Yemen-based, Iran-backed Houthis militant group said it imposed a maritime ban on Saudi Arabia. The Houthis on 21 July said six ships had turned back, although this could not be verified.
Vessels are continuing to violate a US blockade on Iranian ports, while commercial traffic through the strait of Hormuz remains overwhelmingly controlled by Iran, despite US official's claims to the contrary.
The US Central Command (Centcom) said it redirected seven commercial vessels and disabled one to prevent ships from leaving or entering Iranian ports as of 20 July. US president Donald Trump on 21 July told reporters during a meeting with Lebanese president Joseph Aoun that the blockade is "like a steel wall" and that no ships are getting through.
But data from vessel tracking service Vortexa shows that nine vessels departing or heading to Iran ports have transited through the strait of Hormuz since the US blockade was reimposed on 14 July.
Tropical storm Bertha, the second named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, is forecast to move towards the US Gulf coast, possibly threatening an area from Florida to Louisiana, home to significant oil refining assets and commodity marine terminals.
BP has removed some non-essential personnel from its Thunder Horse and Na Kika offshore platforms "out of an abundance of caution", the company said.
US oil major Chevron said on 20 July that it was shutting in output and evacuating staff from its offshore Petronius facility ahead of the storm. Petronius is located 130 miles (209km) southeast of New Orleans, Louisiana. Non-essential workers are also being relocated from Chevron's Tubular Bells and Blind Faith platforms, the company said.
Ice Brent futures rose in early Asian trading hours, after the Yemeni Houthi militant group's maritime ban on Saudi Arabia led vessels to turn away from the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
The Ice front-month September Brent contract was at $92.21/bl at 04:00 GMT, higher by $1.20/bl from its settlement on 21 July, when it ended $1.79/bl higher.
The Nymex front-month September crude contract was at $85.35/bl, up by $1.01/bl from its settlement on 21 July, when it ended $1.86/bl higher.
Several large tankers have turned away from passing Yemen's coastline or the Bab el-Mandeb strait in the Red Sea on 21 July, according to AIS data. Three are very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and one an Aframax. All had either loaded, or were going to load, crude at Saudi Arabian Red Sea ports.
The VLCC Xin Long Yang loaded Saudi crude at Yanbu on 18 July and was destined for Qinzhou, China, AIS data indicate. But it turned around before approaching the Bab el-Mandeb strait. VLCCs New Prime and Xin Tong Yang were ballasting towards Yanbu before they turned around.
This comes a day after the Yemen-based, Iran-backed Houthis militant group said it imposed a maritime ban on Saudi Arabia. The Houthis on 21 July said six ships had turned back, although this could not be verified.
Vessels are continuing to violate a US blockade on Iranian ports, while commercial traffic through the strait of Hormuz remains overwhelmingly controlled by Iran, despite US official's claims to the contrary.
The US Central Command (Centcom) said it redirected seven commercial vessels and disabled one to prevent ships from leaving or entering Iranian ports as of 20 July. US president Donald Trump on 21 July told reporters during a meeting with Lebanese president Joseph Aoun that the blockade is "like a steel wall" and that no ships are getting through.
But data from vessel tracking service Vortexa shows that nine vessels departing or heading to Iran ports have transited through the strait of Hormuz since the US blockade was reimposed on 14 July.
Tropical storm Bertha, the second named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, is forecast to move towards the US Gulf coast, possibly threatening an area from Florida to Louisiana, home to significant oil refining assets and commodity marine terminals.
BP has removed some non-essential personnel from its Thunder Horse and Na Kika offshore platforms "out of an abundance of caution", the company said.
US oil major Chevron said on 20 July that it was shutting in output and evacuating staff from its offshore Petronius facility ahead of the storm. Petronius is located 130 miles (209km) southeast of New Orleans, Louisiana. Non-essential workers are also being relocated from Chevron's Tubular Bells and Blind Faith platforms, the company said.
By YouLiang Chay