Oil prices head for record monthly rise as Middle East conflict escalates

Oil prices extended gains on Monday, March 30, 2026, with ​Brent headed for a record monthly rise, after Yemeni Houthis launched their first attacks on Israel over the ‌weekend.

The attack widened the United States-Israel war with Iran in the Middle East.

Brent crude futures jumped $3.94, or 3.5%, to $116.51 a barrel at 0703 GMT after settling 4.2% higher on Friday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate was at $102.14 a barrel, up $1.86, or 1.87%, following a 5.5% gain in the previous session.

“The market has all but discounted the prospect of ​a negotiated end to the war, Trump’s claims of ongoing ‘direct and indirect’ talks with Iran notwithstanding, and is bracing for ​a sharp escalation in military hostilities, which is a bullish signal for crude, with huge uncertainties on ⁠the timing and nature of the outcome,” said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.

Oil prices set for steepest weekly fall in 6 months

U.S. President Donald Trump said ​the U.S. and Iran have been meeting “directly and indirectly” and that Iran’s new leaders have been “very reasonable”, as more U.S troops arrived in ​the region, while the Israeli military said on Monday it is attacking the Iranian government’s infrastructure throughout Tehran.

Brent has soared 59% this month, the steepest monthly jump, exceeding gains seen during the 1990 Gulf War, after the Iran conflict effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for a fifth of the world’s ​oil and gas supplies, Reuters reported.

The war, launched on February 28 with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, has spread across the Middle East, ​raising concern about shipping lanes around the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea.

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