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EnergyNow Morning Oil Price Report
Report Date & Time: September 23, 2026 – 5:56 a.m. MDT – Using Trading View Prices
Summary
- WTI crude is approximately US$89.85 per barrel, down US$0.67, or 0.74%, from Tuesday’s November-contract settlement of US$90.52. WTI remains under $90 as improving Gulf supply and rising U.S. crude inventories pressure the market.
- Brent crude is approximately US$99.77 per barrel, up US$0.52, or 0.52%, from Tuesday’s US$99.25 settlement. Brent is therefore modestly higher and holding close to $100 despite the broader decline in crude this week.
- Improving Saudi and Iraqi supply is weighing on crude, but an increasingly severe diesel shortage is providing support. European diesel refining margins have reached record territory as markets consider possible U.S. restrictions on diesel exports.
Latest Oil Prices
At approximately 5:56 a.m. MDT Wednesday, WTI was trading near US$89.85 per barrel, compared with Tuesday’s November-contract settlement of US$90.52. That represents a decline of approximately 67 cents, or 0.74%.
Brent was approximately US$99.77 per barrel, compared with Tuesday’s US$99.25 settlement, putting the international benchmark 52 cents, or about 0.52%, higher.
Reuters had Brent at $99.62 and WTI at $90.08 earlier Wednesday, indicating WTI weakened somewhat further while Brent strengthened slightly after that snapshot.
The important WTI rollover that complicated Tuesday’s report has now occurred. The expired October contract should no longer be compared directly with today’s incoming November WTI benchmark. Today’s $89.85 figure is therefore compared with Tuesday’s November settlement of $90.52 rather than the higher expiring October contract.
Why Oil Is Moving
The main downward pressure continues to come from improving Middle East supply availability.
Saudi Arabia restarted its strategically important East-West Pipeline to the Red Sea on Tuesday, after drone attacks forced it offline on September 11. The kingdom is also offering more crude to Asian refiners from locations outside the Strait of Hormuz.
Iraq is adding barrels as well. Its oil minister says exports are now above 3 million barrels per day, with shipments through Turkey expected to rise beyond 600,000 bpd.
Iran has meanwhile indicated that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen within seven days if the United States eases military pressure and removes its blockade on Iranian ports. That possibility is encouraging traders to reduce some of the geopolitical premium built into crude.
Key Market Risks or Catalysts
The biggest counterweight is now the global diesel market.
European low-sulphur gasoil’s premium over Brent reached a record of roughly US$95 per barrel after President Donald Trump said he supported considering restrictions on U.S. diesel exports. Europe has become increasingly dependent on U.S. diesel and jet-fuel supplies because the Middle East conflict has disrupted traditional flows.
U.S. crude inventories are another bearish factor. Industry data showed stocks rose 1.8 million barrels last week, versus analyst expectations for a decline. Official EIA inventory figures are due later Wednesday.
Hormuz remains the largest geopolitical wildcard. Diplomatic statements may pressure prices, but a sustained reduction in the war premium will likely require actual tanker traffic and export volumes to normalize.
Bottom Line
Oil remains near two-week lows, but the picture is increasingly divided.
WTI has slipped below $90 as Gulf crude supply improves, while Brent continues hovering around $100, supported in part by extraordinary tightness in diesel and other refined products.
The crude market is therefore becoming less concerned about an immediate shortage of raw oil while the products market remains highly stressed. If Saudi exports continue recovering and Hormuz traffic improves, crude could face additional pressure. But another military escalation — or worsening diesel shortages — could quickly reverse the decline.
Western Canadian Select (WCS)
A newer, sufficiently reliable September 22 Hardisty physical-market assessment was not available at the time of this 5:56 a.m. update.
The latest verified assessment remains WCS at Hardisty at a US$21.35-per-barrel discount to WTI CMA on September 21. That discount widened by US$0.35 per barrel from the previous trading day’s approximately US$21.00 discount.
An outright WCS price and directly comparable WTI-CMA price were not published in the source reviewed. Importantly, WTI CMA and today’s US$89.85 NYMEX futures price are different benchmarks, so subtracting $21.35 from today’s futures quote would create a misleading WCS price.
The widening WCS differential has been linked to heavy fall refinery maintenance, rising Western Canadian production and reduced spare pipeline capacity.
Who Watches the WCS Price
Oil sands producers realize WCS-linked prices on unhedged production, and their capital plans key off the differential outlook. US Midwest and Gulf Coast refiners with coking capacity buy WCS as feedstock and treat the differential as their margin opportunity. The Alberta government forecasts royalty and tax revenue directly off WCS — a one-dollar move in the differential is worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the provincial budget over a fiscal year. And diluent demand links WCS volumes back to condensate markets.
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