Brent Rebounds 1.5% as Washington's Iran Blame Game Rattles Oil Traders

Crude futures bounced Thursday, snapping a sharp slide. Brent for January 2027 settlements gained 1.76% and traded at $96.26 a barrel shortly after 6:37 am ET, while West Texas Intermediate for December delivery added 0.92% to reach $88.93.

The rebound follows a rough Wednesday, when Brent plunged more than 7% as the Democratic Party's midterm victory sank in and investors started gaming out how a new Congress might shift Washington's posture on the conflict with Iran.

The political fallout is loud. Both President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance pinned the Republican defeat on the war against Iran — an explanation Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf didn't let slide, dismissing it as "loser gambler energy."

Traders are now watching two fronts at once: the war itself and the new balance of power in Washington, where Democrats campaigned on pushing the administration to wind down the conflict and the energy crisis.

Supply routes are adding to the jitters. Two tankers hauling Russian diesel toward the United States changed course, according to the Financial Times — the Talisman is now parked off Algeria signaling for orders, and the Hong Kong-owned, Sierra Leone-flagged Leruo switched its signal to Brazil.

Elsewhere, Colombia's National Hydrocarbons Agency chief Ernesto Forero said the country aims to open new oil exploration opportunities in the first quarter of 2027, telling reporters it wants to "move quickly, but not hastily."