Key US Oil Grade Is Fetching Highest Premium Since Covid-19

Refiners Could Wait Weeks for Oil, Even After Strait Is Fully Reopened, Macquarie Says

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March 31, 2026 at 7:42 PM UTC

The most important US offshore oil varieties are commanding the highest premiums since as far back as the Covid-19 pandemic as energy-market chaos from the Iran war worsens.

Overseas demand is soaring for high-sulfur US crude grades that are broadly comparable to Middle Eastern supplies cut off as missiles and drones rain down on Persian Gulf oil fields and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has effectively ceased.