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Brent Rebounds To $106/bbl

Brent rebounds to $106/bbl but on track for weekly decline; Middle East countries formally reject Iran's Hormuz toll system
Published: May 22, 2026
Written by:
Vincent Wu

Vincent Wu

Research Associate, Flux
Vincent Wu
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Brent crude futures recovered from lows of nearly $102/bbl last night, trading higher on Friday morning up above $106/bbl by 16:35 SGT (09:35 BST) at the time of writing.

However, prices are on track for a weekly decline from $110/bbl levels earlier this week. Crucially, Brent crude closed yesterday above the 50-day moving average, a level that has provided robust support for prices this month. In the news, five Middle Eastern countries have formally rejected Iran’s establishment of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority to control transit through the Strait of Hormuz, where in a letter to the IMO, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE said commercial and merchant vessels shouldn’t engage with the PGSA or cross the waterway using a route designated by Iran. Kenyan public transport operators called off a strike that ‌was due to resume next week after President William Ruto announced on Friday that the government would cut diesel prices by more than 4%. Speaking to the FT, France’s finance minister Roland Lescure said that countries need clarity on the “duration and intensity” of the conflict before tapping further oil reserves. ExxonMobil is in talks to acquire rights to produce oil in Venezuela nearly two decades after it was effectively expelled from the country. Serbian President Alexsandar Vucic said he was not optimistic that an agreement will be reached over Hungarian oil company MOL’s bid to take a majority stake in NIS, the operator of the Balkan nation’s sole refinery, before a Friday deadline. Finally, the Jul/Aug’26 and Jul/Jan’27 Brent futures spreads are at $3.51/bbl and $18.00/bbl respectively.

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