Oil prices hold firm on Thursday

Oil prices held firm on Thursday as recovering Gulf crude exports and a surprise rise in US inventories eased supply concerns, while investors assessed renewed US-Iran diplomatic efforts.

Brent crude futures rose 0.6 per cent to $98.67 a barrel by 0704 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 0.5 per cent to $90.09.

Both benchmarks remained volatile during the session, falling more than 1 per cent before recovering their losses. Brent gained around 14 per cent in September, its biggest monthly increase since July, while WTI rose about 5 per cent.

US crude inventories increased by 922,000 barrels to 427.3 million barrels in the week ended September 25, against expectations for a 264,000-barrel draw.

Saudi Arabia also resumed oil tanker loadings from Yanbu after restarting operations on its East-West Pipeline. Goldman Sachs estimated Gulf oil exports, including “dark exports,” had recovered to 23.3 million barrels per day over the past week, in line with their 2025 average.

Meanwhile, Iran said it had received a US response to its latest proposal to revive the collapsed Gulf ceasefire. US President Donald Trump denied reports that he was willing to provide sanctions relief and release frozen Iranian funds in exchange for steps by Tehran on its nuclear programme.

Attribution: Reuters