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Brent: Higher range risk and global growth fears – MUFG

Halpenny stresses that the extension of Trump’s pause only on attacks against energy assets, combined with Iran’s limited tanker gestures, suggests the Strait of Hormuz will stay constrained. MUFG expects Brent crude Oil to drift higher, with a severe scenario of USD 120–160 per barrel raising the risk of a larger risk-off episode and increased global recession concerns.

Oil supply constraints and risk-off

"Given the pause until 6th April only includes attacks on energy assets, the conflict looks set to extend further and the longer the Strait of Hormuz remains closed the greater the energy supply problem will become."

"There was some gesture from Iran by letting ten tankers through but given the Strait of Hormuz is a key part of Iran’s leverage there seems little prospect of a more meaningful flow of traffic being allowed through any time soon."

"So crude oil prices look set to continue drifting higher which raises the prospect of a bigger episode of risk-off as global recession risks rise."

"In a more severe scenario of Brent crude oil trading in a range of USD 120-160pbl and equity markets taking a bigger hit, the DXY could advance closer to the 105-level (+7%-8% from pre-conflict level)."

(This article was created with the help of an Artificial Intelligence tool and reviewed by an editor.)

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The FXStreet Insights Team is a group of journalists that handpicks selected market observations published by renowned experts. The content includes notes by commercial as well as additional insights by internal and external analysts.

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Why is Crude Oil priced for a reopening the ships haven't made?
Fourteen vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday. Before the war, the count ran near 120 a day. In the sessions since the waterway was publicly declared open, Brent has drifted back to $87 and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) to $81, both a little lower again on Wednesday, with daily momentum on each unwound from the top of its range in late July to the low twenties now.