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Neutral As of Aug 6, 2026 16:00 ET Download PDF

Daily Energy & Shipping Briefing — Aug 06, 2026

Global crude oil prices saw a rebound on Thursday, reversing a recent weakening trend, driven by a mix of geopolitical developments including optimism around the Strait of Hormuz and reports of a Houthi attack. US equity markets closed mixed, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slightly down, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted gains.

Energy Prices

Crude

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
Brent ICE $/bbl 82.49 +3.04
WTI NYMEX $/bbl 77.29 +2.07

Products

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline NYMEX c/gal 293.85 +9.97
Heating Oil NYMEX c/gal 393.00 +8.58

Natural Gas

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Henry Hub NYMEX $/MMBtu 2.64 -0.05

Natural Gas Liquids

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
US Mont Belvieu Propane NYMEX $/mt 356.94 +5.25

Price Spreads

Instrument Unit Last Δ Day
RBOB Gasoline/Brent Crack Spread $/bbl 40.93 +1.15

Shipping Rates & Bunkers

Dirty Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

Vessel Route Spot TCE Avg YTD
VLCC, 270 AG-FE 41,000 39,800
Suezmax, 130 WAF-UKC 32,000 31,500

Clean Tanker (Spot TCE, $/day)

Vessel Route Spot TCE Avg YTD
LR2, 75 AG-FE 21,000 26,500
MR, 37 TC2 (UKC-USAC) 18,500 19,000

Time Charter & Asset Values

Vessel 1yr ($/day) Newbuild ($M) 5yr ($M)
VLCC, 200+ 50,000 128.0 113.0
Aframax, 115 35,000 75.0 68.0

LNG Vessels ($/day)

Type Spot Sentiment 52wk Avg
160M3 Tri-fuel diesel electric (East) 13,500 Neutral 30,500
174M3 TFDE (Atlantic) 15,000 Neutral 32,000

Bunkers ($/mt)

Port VLSFO HSFO MGO
Singapore 510.0 427.0 587.0
Rotterdam 525.0 435.0 600.0

LPG (Spot TCE, $/day)

VLGC, 44 (AG-Japan) 35,000
VLGC, 44 (USGC-Japan) 60,000

Carbon Markets

Instrument Unit Bid Offer
European Union Allowances (Spot) EUR/ton 70.50 70.60

Equities & Currencies

Index Region Last Δ Day
S&P 500 United States 7,709.96 -13.59
Dow Jones Industrial Average United States 53,885.10 -464.02
Pair Region Last Δ Day
EUR/$ European Union 1.15 0.00
USD/JPY Japan 157.72 +0.09

Developments

  • World Oil Prices Rebound on Strait of Hormuz Optimism and Houthi Attack Reports

    Crude oil benchmarks Brent and WTI edged higher on Thursday, reversing a three-day weakening trend, as renewed diplomatic optimism regarding the Strait of Hormuz was tempered by reports of a Houthi missile attack on a Saudi oil tanker.

    Pintu News, Reuters · Aug 6, 2026

  • US Stock Markets Close Mixed as Investors Weigh Earnings and Geopolitical News

    US equity markets finished mixed on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closing lower, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to a new all-time high, as investors digested corporate earnings and Middle East developments.

    Zacks Investment Research, Reuters · Aug 6, 2026

  • US ADP Labor Market Report Falls Below Expectations Ahead of Nonfarm Payrolls

    The US ADP private sector employment report for July came in below expectations, showing an increase of only 44,000 jobs, which made investors more cautious ahead of the official Nonfarm Payrolls report due later in the week.

    RoboForex · Aug 6, 2026

  • EIA Reports Unexpected Build in US Crude Stocks, Gasoline Inventories Decline

    The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a surprise weekly build in US commercial crude stocks, rising by 2.5 million barrels, while gasoline inventories fell by 1.6 million barrels during the week ended July 31.

    DTN Progressive Farmer · Aug 5, 2026

  • Japanese Yen Pauses Strengthening After Coordinated US-Japan Intervention

    The USD/JPY pair paused near 157.72 on Thursday, with the Japanese yen consolidating after gaining almost 5% since the start of the week following large-scale joint currency interventions by Tokyo and Washington.

    RoboForex, Markets.com · Aug 6, 2026