Fuel Prices: A Barrel of Brent close to 120 Dollars, the Highest since the Start of the Conflict in the Middle East
While the situation in the Strait of Hormuz is getting bogged down, and the blockade remains, the barrel of Brent, a benchmark on the oil market, has jumped to a level rarely reached.
The tension in the oil market is increasing this Wednesday 29th April 2026 with the prospect of a blockage which drags on the Strait of Hormuz. Enough to push it barrel from Brent at a level not seen since 2022 and the first months of war in Ukraine.
Around 5:55 pm GMT, the price of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea, for delivery in June, rose 7.39% to $119.48. A few minutes earlier, he advanced until $119.76, the highest price observed during the two months of crisis in the Middle East.
It thus returns to the level at which it evolved in mid-2022, when the invasion of ukraine by the Russian army had caused a surge in oil and gas prices.
Its American equivalent, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate, also for delivery in June, gained 7.24% to 107.16 dollars.
A bogged down situation
Donald Trump raised the possibility of a blockade against Iran continuing “for several months” during a meeting Tuesday with oil executives, a senior White House official said Wednesday. In this scenario, that of “Iran on the Strait of Hormuz should also continue”, notes Arne Lohmann Rasmussen of Global Risk Management.
A possibility which strains investors given the importance of this strait for world trade, particularly in hydrocarbons.
The market is increasingly convinced that there will be neither a rapid and lasting peace nor an immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
“Investors are reacting to the lack of progress in resolving the conflict between the United States and Iran”, says David Morrison of Trade Nation.
Shortages to fear?
Iranians “better get smart, and fast! ”, Donald Trump threatened earlier today on his Truth Social network. The White House notably displays its skepticism about a new proposal from Tehran to unblock the Strait of Hormuz.
While fuel prices are at their highest in France, the government is increasing its reassuring messages, as we explained in a previous article. France “still has more than three months of (oil) stocks to overcome possible supply difficulties”, government spokesperson Maud Bregeon recalled on Tuesday.
For now, only 4% of French service stations experience disruptions on at least one fuel (petrol or diesel). According to the latest figures at our disposal, this Tuesday, April 28, a liter of diesel sold on average in France at 2.1639 euros, and Unleaded 95 – E10 at 1.9754 euros.
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