Brent crude tops $90 with a near 8 percent jump after the Iraq strikes and missile launches

Brent crude passed $90 a barrel on Wednesday, 29 July 2026 (7 Mordad 1405). Sahmino's price board recorded Brent at $90.51 at 18:28 Tehran time, up 7.91 percent, or $6.63, on the day. CNBC reported the same day that oil had jumped more than 7 percent, putting Brent at $90.35 and West Texas Intermediate at $85.11, up about 7.4 percent.

The move built in stages. In the early hours of Wednesday, Brent stood at $83, and by 07:28 it had risen 4.63 percent to $87.76. A Reuters report the same day attributed the advance to the joint US and Saudi strikes on positions of Iran-aligned groups in Iraq, the interception of ballistic missiles fired toward American forces, and a drawdown in US crude inventories. In that report Brent was quoted at $87.24, up 3.8 percent, and West Texas Intermediate at $81.99, up 3.4 percent.

According to CNBC, the second leg of the rally followed remarks by Donald Trump to Fox News about a forceful response to Iran. Wednesday's gain claws back part of a roughly 16 percent fall in Brent over the three preceding sessions. The global oil price has two simultaneous effects on Iran's economy: on the foreign currency earnings from oil exports, and on expectations in the domestic currency and asset markets.