Oil Prices Head for Second Weekly Drop; Brent at $95.87
Brent crude traded at $95.87 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate at $88.49 as oil prices headed for a second straight weekly loss, even as Iranian and Houthi attacks on tankers and Saudi energy sites continued and peace talks stayed stalled.
Oil prices head for a second straight weekly loss, with Brent crude trading at $95.87 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main US benchmark, at $88.49 per barrel at the time of writing on November 13, 2026.
The declines came even after two consecutive days of gains driven by news from the Middle East. Both benchmarks sit well below the peaks reached in mid-October.
They remain far above where they traded in February, before the war began.
Mixed signals on the war
Traders are weighing contradictory signals. The risk of serious escalation appears moderate, but Iranian attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow shipping lane for much of the world's oil, have not stopped.
The latest reports from Iranian sources describe four vessels that did not follow Iran's instructions for crossing the strait and were attacked.
Hopes for a peace deal look slim. US President Donald Trump said this week, "We don't need a deal with Iran," and added that "Those days have long since passed."
He went on: "We've got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we've got their Strait!" Iran, for its part, appears unwilling to move on the conditions it has set for an agreement.
Attacks in Saudi Arabia
In Saudi Arabia, Yemen's Houthis kept up their attacks. The latest strikes targeted energy sites, including a pumping station on the East-West pipeline and a facility in the port city of Yanbu.
Even so, Saudi Arabia said its crude production rebounded to 10.56 million barrels a day last month. That is essentially the level before the war started.
Aramco's chief executive said the company plans to raise output further over the remaining months until the end of the year.
The price moves matter beyond trading floors. Crude is the main input for gasoline and diesel, so a sustained drop from October's highs would ease pressure on fuel costs, though current levels are still well above those of February.
Whether the weekly decline holds depends on the next round of tanker incidents in Hormuz and on any change in the stalled diplomacy over Iran.
