Oil Prices Rise on Trump's Iran Sanctions, Copper Market Tighens

US President Donald Trump's announcement of new steps to increase economic pressure on Iran has led to rising oil prices, marking their fifth consecutive day of gains. The ICE Brent price surpassed $92 per barrel, while NYMEX WTI traded above $86 per barrel on Thursday morning.

The EIA's weekly stock report showed that US commercial crude inventories increased by 4.4 million barrels to 428.8 million barrels, marking the third consecutive weekly increase and the highest reading since May. This divergence from analyst forecasts of a 74,000-barrel decline and the API's reported draw of 328,000 barrels.

Crude exports rose by 1.01 million barrels per day week over week to 4.07 million barrels per day, while imports dropped 746,000 barrels per day to 6.59 million barrels per day. Refinery operations remained strong, with crude processing up 216,000 barrels per day and utilisation at 97.2%, near typical seasonal peaks.

The copper market saw some relief after more than 35,000 tonnes were delivered into available LME warehouses yesterday, following an addition of over 20,000 tonnes the prior session. However, persistent tightness at the front end of the curve indicates that the squeeze may not be entirely over.