Crude oil and gasoline prices surged on Wednesday, reaching 4-month and 2-month highs, respectively. President Trump’s threat of further action against Iran boosted crude prices, along with a decline in crude inventories and lower-than-expected gasoline supplies in the EIA report. Dollar strength limited crude’s gains.

President Trump’s push for Iran to negotiate a nuclear deal has raised tensions, potentially impacting oil supplies. Russia’s stance on the Ukraine conflict adds support to oil prices, as the war is expected to continue.

IEA cut the 2026 global crude surplus estimate to 3.7 million bpd, while the EIA raised US crude production but lowered energy consumption estimates for 2026.

Crude oil stored on tankers that were stationary for 7 days dropped to 113.30 million bbl.

OPEC+ plans to maintain the production pause in Q1 2026 due to an emerging global oil surplus. OPEC’s December production rose to 29.03 million bpd.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries and tankers have impacted oil exports. US and EU sanctions on Russian oil entities have further hindered exports.

The EIA report showed mixed results for crude oil and products, with unexpected declines in crude inventories but a rise in distillate inventories to a 2-year high.

US crude oil production slightly decreased, while the number of active US oil rigs increased to 411.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Crude Prices Supported by Iran Tensions