North American Oil Is In Demand as World Grasps for Supplies

A pumpjack operates above an oil well in the Bakken Formation outside Williston, North Dakota.
Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

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By Robert Tuttle and Christopher Charleston

April 6, 2026 at 9:29 PM UTC

Updated on

April 6, 2026 at 9:52 PM UTC

The spiderweb of cracks in the global oil market are spreading across the Rocky Mountains and US Great Plains as demand for a shrinking pool of accessible crude escalates.

Oil grades from Texas and North Dakota to Alberta are surging as refiners compete with rivals in Asia and Europe for barrels after weeks of strangled shipments via the Strait of Hormuz.