Tuesday 15 September 2026 07:30 UTC
Oil Risks Rise as Hormuz Tensions Push US Yields Above 5%
In the 24 hours ending 15 September at 07:30 UTC, oil risks grew as US war costs and borrowing rates climbed.
Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline may remain mostly closed for three to five weeks. Partial service could return during repairs. The route can carry seven million barrels daily while avoiding Hormuz.
US crude reached $104.95 a barrel, its highest level since mid-May. Qatar offered several October and November oil cargoes from ports inside Hormuz.
US officials said oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz were rising. Iran listed 77 vessels accused of breaking its passage rules. Tehran threatened future restrictions, fines, detention or seizure.
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Iran and America gave conflicting accounts of a damaged tanker near Oman. Iran said mines struck the vessel during an unauthorised crossing. The US said Iran attacked the already damaged ship with a drone.
The Houthis said they launched large attacks against King Khalid Air Base in Saudi Arabia. Saudi authorities issued air-raid warnings in several southern and western cities. No confirmed damage was given.
Andy Burnham, the British prime minister, agreed to send military advisers to Saudi Arabia. They will help Saudi forces defend against Houthi attacks.
Iran blamed the United States and Saudi Arabia for failed Gulf talks in Oman. Iran said Saudi Arabia had demanded the meeting’s cancellation.
Donald Trump, the US president, said Iran urgently wanted a deal. Iran denied seeking talks and repeated that Washington must first meet its conditions.
The Pentagon said American weapons use had strained key supplies and exposed production limits. Munitions costs reached $22.3 billion by late June. Total US war costs had passed $33 billion.
The US ten-year Treasury yield rose above 5%, its highest level since 2007. Oil-driven inflation and heavy government borrowing pushed yields higher. Markets expected the Federal Reserve to raise rates by 0.25 percentage points.
Trump said Ukraine and Russia had agreed to stop attacking each other’s energy sites. Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, said no detailed ceasefire existed.
Ukraine attacked the Beriev aircraft factory in Taganrog and caused a large fire. Ukrainian drones also hit the Syzran oil refinery, starting several fires.
Gitanas Nausėda, Lithuania’s president, said NATO fighters shot down a suspected Russian drone. He described this as the first such interception over Lithuania.
Trump rejected stronger controls on artificial intelligence and called major safety fears a hoax. He said new rules could weaken American leadership.
Dario Amodei, Anthropic’s chief executive, supported slower development of the most powerful AI systems. Greg Brockman, an OpenAI co-founder, backed limits for frontier models and international agreements.
The Bank for International Settlements warned that the AI stock rally was becoming more fragile. Technology companies had borrowed more than $1 trillion by 2025.
OpenAI bought smartphone-camera startup Glass Imaging in a deal worth more than $300 million. DeepSeek considered a Shanghai listing at a possible $74 billion value.
US data centres could add 15 billion cubic feet of daily gas demand by 2035. Gas may supply 69% of new power connected to these centres.
A second US federal judge blocked Trump’s restrictions on mail-in voting. The ruling came before November’s congressional elections.