Oman crude makes history, crosses $150 for first time

Muscat: The Oman crude for delivery in the coming month of May traded at $152 .58 on Tuesday, an increase of $4.79 from the last trading on Monday.

On Monday, March 16, Oman crude oil reached a new all-time high of $147.79 per barrel on the Gulf Mercantile Exchange (GME). This surpassed the previous record set only days earlier in the same month.

Factfile

March 16, 2026: Reached $147.79 per barrel, the current historical peak for the Oman Crude Oil (OQD) Marker Price.
March 13, 2026: Settled at $144.36 per barrel for May 2026 delivery, marking a significant record at that time.
July 2008: Recorded a previous long-standing all-time high of $141.27 per barrel. June 2014: Reached a multi-year peak of $107.68 per barrel before a major market downturn. 

March 12, 2026: Surged to $134.75 per barrel.
March 9, 2026: Jumped to $124.68 per barrel, a $24.37 increase from the previous session.
March 6, 2026: Broke the $100 threshold for the first time in years, closing at $100.31 per barrel. 

Oil prices surged more than five percent on Tuesday as several countries pushed back against Donald Trump's demand that they help secure the key Strait of Hormuz, while Iran continued to target crude-producing neighbours.
They recovered the previous day's sharp losses that came after the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said more stockpiles could be tapped if needed.
According to Century Financial, Oil prices exhibited considerable volatility last week amid the ongoing Middle East tensions, with oil futures rising about 40% over the past two weeks. Since then, oil has pared some of those gains but remains elevated after the U.S. attacked military targets on Iran’s Kharg island on Friday, while threatening to attack the nation’s energy infrastructure next.

Meanwhile, crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz remain affected by the closure, sparking a surge in premiums for physical barrels and fuel prices. This has forced certain producers to curtail pumping. In light of this supply disruption, the IEA intends to immediately release an unprecedented stockpile to Asia.

On the other hand, Europe and America will receive supplies from the end of March, with no clarity yet on the volume or pace. Sunday’s statement revealed that the agency has received an implementation plan for the record 400 million reserve release announced last week. Saudi Arabia is offering long-term oil buyers the option to receive April shipments through the Red Sea port of Yanbu amid ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. Buyers who choose to receive their cargoes through Yanbu will only get a portion of their usual monthly allocation, as pipeline capacity to the Red Sea port remains limited.

Meanwhile, those opting to lift crude from the Arabian Gulf could face delays if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed.
To manage the disruption, Saudi Aramco has been ramping up shipments via Yanbu and is now offering contracted cargoes from the Red Sea terminal as an alternative export route.

 Drone strike sparks UAE oil field fire -A drone strike caused a fire at a major oil field in the United Arab Emirates, authorities said, as Iran continued its drone and missile strikes across the Gulf.The Shah oil field, located 230 kilometres (143 miles) south of Abu Dhabi city, has a production capacity of approximately 70,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to the UAE's state-owned energy giant ADNOC.

With agencies and analyst inputs.