Oil prices choppy after IEA warns on market constraints; Saudi officials say Aramco facilities attacked

Key points

• Oil prices were flat Wednesday after overnight gains, with Brent at $105.66 and WTI at $94.20.
• The IEA warned that diesel market constraints could last well into 2027.
• Saudi officials said an Aramco building in Dhahran was attacked overnight, with no injuries.

Oil prices were little changed Wednesday morning after giving back earlier gains, as investors weighed the International Energy Agency's latest monthly report on the oil market. Front-month futures for both Brent crude and U.S. West Texas Intermediate were flat by 4:30 a.m. ET, having each climbed more than 1% overnight. Brent was last at $105.66 a barrel and WTI at $94.20 a barrel.

The IEA's October Oil Market Report, published Wednesday, warned that constraints on diesel markets could continue well into 2027. It also said fresh attacks on Saudi Arabia threatened to derail a recovery on the supply side of the global oil market.

Attacks on Saudi facilities

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Energy said Wednesday that an administrative building belonging to oil giant Saudi Aramco was attacked overnight. No injuries were reported at the site in Dhahran, a city on Saudi Arabia's eastern coast. The attack followed a series of Houthi strikes on the Saudi capital Riyadh over the past week, including a fatal strike on the city's international airport.

According to Al Jazeera, Houthi energy terminals and fuel reserves in Yemen were struck by a Saudi-led coalition. A spokesperson said precautions were taken to avoid "collateral damage on civilians."

I am long oil... bullish oil...I think it can rally another $20 or $25 bucks

— Paul Tudor Jones, hedge fund manager and founder and chief investment officer of Tudor Investment

U.S. and Iran tensions

Tensions continued between the U.S. and Iran. U.S. Central Command rejected claims by the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy that the Strait of Hormuz is under Iran's control and that approaching U.S. Navy warships would be "sunk."

CENTCOM said in an X post that the "RGC's navy commander has no navy," adding that "American forces and regional partners clearly control the Strait of Hormuz."