Brent Oil Surpasses $100 as Iran Vows Permanent Hormuz Blockade
Brent oil prices Strait of Hormuz 2026
Global energy markets remained in a state of high alarm on Friday, March 13, 2026, as Brent crude futures climbed above the $101 per barrel mark following a defiant first address from Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei. In a statement read by state television, Khamenei insisted that the Strait of Hormuz “must remain closed” to serve as a strategic lever against the United States and Israel. This blockade has effectively reduced maritime traffic through the world’s most vital energy chokepoint from its usual 20 million barrels per day to a mere trickle. According to market reports, the international benchmark rose as much as 10% on Thursday and maintained its position on Friday, as investors weighed the likelihood of a prolonged conflict that has already driven prices up nearly 40% since military operations began in late February.
In an urgent attempt to stabilize soaring costs and replenish global supply, the Trump administration took the significant step of temporarily lifting sanctions on Russian oil shipments currently at sea. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a 30-day general license late Thursday, allowing countries to purchase approximately 128 million barrels of “stranded” Russian crude to mitigate the historic supply shock. Official statements indicate that while the move is intended to calm markets, the administration maintains that the measure is narrowly tailored to avoid providing significant financial benefit to Moscow. President Trump, meanwhile, has taken a dual-track approach, asserting that while high prices generate record profits for the U.S. as the world’s largest producer, his primary focus remains the total dismantlement of the “evil empire” in Iran.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has characterized the current situation as the “largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market,” surpassing the shocks of 1973 and 2022. Despite a unanimous agreement by 32 member nations to release a record-breaking 400 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves, the market response has been muted as physical assets in the Persian Gulf remain under threat. Reports from the region detail multiple tankers set ablaze off Basra and Jebel Ali, while fuel storage tanks in Bahrain were targeted by suspected Iranian strikes. With nearly 1,000 vessels currently trapped or idling in the Arabian Gulf, analysts warn that Brent could breach $150 per barrel by the end of the month if a secure convoy system is not established to restore freedom of navigation through the strait.
