Key Highlights

  • Brent crude rose to around $107.50 a barrel on Tuesday, near a four-month high.
  • The move follows a 1% gain in the previous session.
  • Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline has been shut, removing an alternative export route to the Strait of Hormuz.
  • US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has indicated he expects the pipeline to resume operations soon.

Brent crude rose to around $107.50 a barrel on Tuesday, near a four-month high, following a 1% gain in the previous session, as Supply disruptions in the Middle East outweighed signs of progress toward a Russia-Ukraine energy truce.

What Happened

Market concerns remain focused on Saudi Arabia, where the East-West pipeline has been shut, removing an important alternative route for exporting crude without relying on the Strait of Hormuz. Riyadh is reportedly seeking to increase shipments through the strategic waterway while the pipeline remains offline, although repairs could take several weeks. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has indicated that he expects the pipeline to resume operations soon.

The pipeline's outage has heightened the market's sensitivity to any further disruption along the Strait of Hormuz specifically, since increased reliance on that single route removes a layer of redundancy that had previously helped cushion supply shocks.

Market Reaction

Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts are gaining momentum elsewhere: US President Donald Trump announced a truce on strikes on Russia and Ukraine's energy facilities, while Turkey is seeking to broker an agreement between Kyiv and Moscow to end attacks on Black Sea shipping.

The combination of an active Middle East supply disruption alongside easing tensions in the Russia-Ukraine conflict illustrates how oil markets are currently weighing two separate geopolitical risk channels rather than a single unified narrative.

Outlook

The timeline for repairing Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline, alongside the durability of the announced Russia-Ukraine energy truce, are likely to remain the key factors shaping oil prices in the near term.

Any confirmation of a resumption date for the pipeline from Saudi officials or US Energy Secretary Chris Wright would likely be a closely watched catalyst for easing some of the current supply-driven price pressure.