WTI Explodes Higher as Middle East Shipping Risks Multiply

September WTI crude oil futures were trading at $92.31 late Thursday, up $10.54 or 12.89% for the week. The contract posted a weekly low at $79.58 before climbing to a weekly high at $92.31. This was not a normal risk-premium rally. WTI started the week with the Strait of Hormuz already impaired, then gained speed as the market realized Saudi Arabia’s alternate export route through the Red Sea was also under threat. By Thursday, traders were no longer pricing one damaged chokepoint. They were pricing a supply system with fewer ways to move…