Oil plummets 6%, Brent below $72

Oil drilling rigs

Oil prices deepened losses today, Oct. 28, as geopolitical risk premiums in the Middle East narrowed after Israel avoided hitting Iran's nuclear facilities or oil infrastructure in its military strike.

Brent crude futures for December delivery fell 6.1%, or $4.63, to $71.42 a barrel, after touching $71.18 during the day.

WTI crude futures for December delivery dropped 6.15%, or $4.4, to $67.38 a barrel, after touching $66.92.

“Absent a Middle East flare-up, our base case for WTI remains at $65 per barrel in 2025, with a downside bias if OPEC+ restores supply to the market,” said Matt Portillo, Analyst at Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co.

Separately, Citigroup analysts lowered their expectations for the price of Brent crude by $4 to $70 per barrel for Q4 2024. They expect that military operations in the Middle East would not affect oil supplies.