Stocks
Oil Market Volatility Continues as US-Iran Tensions Escalate
The global oil market continues to be volatile due to ongoing tensions between the US and Iran. The price of Brent crude oil is nearing $89 per barrel, a level not seen since July.
The top five international oil companies - ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, TotalEnergies, and BP - generated almost $70 billion in free cash flow in Q2 2026, the largest amount on record. This surpasses the previous peak of about $60 billion reached in Q2 2022 during the Russia-Ukraine tensions.
The US Department of Energy reported that crude oil reserves in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve had fallen below 300 million barrels, reaching their lowest level in more than four decades.