Oil fell after hitting a six-month high last week, with Brent dropping below US$115 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate near US$101 as the US and Iran repeated familiar rhetoric. Brent has surged almost 90% so far in 2026 as the Middle East war disrupted flows, and its 14-day relative-strength index topped 74 on Friday (Oct 23), above the 70 level some traders see as a pullback signal. Tensions are rising as fighting continues between Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia, and Trump has hinted at possible strikes after the US midterms on Nov 3. Commonwealth Bank of Australia analyst Vivek Dhar said Brent may need to reach US$150 a barrel to force demand destruction in emerging Asian economies, even though crude shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have recovered to near pre-war levels. Rystad Energy's Jorge Leon said markets are pricing in escalation risk after the US midterms, when Washington may feel less constrained by the political cost of higher oil prices.
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oil pricesgeopoliticsIranStrait of HormuzDonald Trump
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Related tickers and likely impact
PVD
▼ Likely negativePetroVietNam
Relevance: low
| Market | Vietnam stocks |
|---|---|
| Exchange | HOSE |
| Sector | Oil & Gas |
| Industry | Oil Equipment & Services |
| Market cap | 17,349 bn VND |
| P/E | 15.6 |
| P/B | 1.00 |
| Close on 10/23/2026 | 18.70 |
| Change that session | -1.06% |
PVT
▼ Likely negativePVTrans
Relevance: low
| Market | Vietnam stocks |
|---|---|
| Exchange | HOSE |
| Sector | Industrial Goods & Services |
| Industry | Marine Transportation |
| Market cap | 12,251 bn VND |
| P/E | 8.6 |
| P/B | 1.29 |
| Close on 10/23/2026 | 23.70 |
| Change that session | +0.42% |
PLX
▲ Likely positivePetrolimex
Relevance: low
| Market | Vietnam stocks |
|---|---|
| Exchange | HOSE |
| Sector | Oil & Gas |
| Industry | Integrated Oil & Gas |
| Market cap | 45,042 bn VND |
| P/E | 14.0 |
| P/B | 1.85 |
| Close on 10/23/2026 | 35.45 |
| Change that session | -1.12% |
XAU/USD
• NeutralRelevance: low
| Market | Gold |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/23/2026 | 3,995.78 |
| Change that session | -0.72% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- Trump says he'll soon decide whether to ‘make a deal’ with Iran or ‘finish it off'
U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Fox News interview on Sunday that he is deciding whether to “make a deal” with Iran or “finish it off,” adding that it is “getting to be decision time.” Qatari mediators visited Tehran on Sunday as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia continued over the weekend. The last confirmed U.S. strikes on Iran were on Sept. 1, and Trump had previously said strikes would not resume until after the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Trump named Pickaxe Mountain, a deeply buried site linked to Iran's nuclear program, as a potential target and repeated his claim that the U.S. controls the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran says it is preparing a military response to any U.S. attacks. Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are set to meet Iran's leadership in Tehran on Monday, the first meeting of their group since Houthi strikes on Saudi targets.
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US President Donald Trump said Washington is considering a strike on Iran that could come as early as tomorrow, while leaving open the possibility of a deal with Tehran. He said his goal is to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons in the long term, and argued that an earlier US campaign using B-2 bombers was not enough to ensure lasting results. Trump also said oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had risen compared with before the conflict, without providing specific figures. Earlier, US envoy Tom Barrack said a strike could happen this weekend. The conflict between the US, Israel and Iran began in February and has spread across the Middle East, yet nearly nine months later the sides have not found a way to end the tensions.
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- Trump faces two losing options in Iran as IRGC warns on Hormuz
Donald Trump has again ruled out an attack on Iran before the November 3 midterm elections and said he will not use nuclear weapons or order a ground invasion, yet analysts say his military options are limited and do not guarantee victory. The conflict began on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes, after which Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a route that carried at least 20 percent of global crude oil and LNG before the war; crude rose from around 72 dollars to nearly 120 dollars a barrel before easing to 106 dollars. Washington maintains a naval blockade of Iran's southern ports and escorts ships through the strait, the option analysts see as most likely, but Hormuz oil flows fell to 2.9 million barrels on October 11 after recovering to above 81 percent of pre-war levels in September, according to Kpler.
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