Dallas Fed: WTI Seen at $81 Bbl by End-2026


   
Barani Krishnan
DTN Refined Fuels Market Reporter

   SECAUCUS, NJ (DTN) -- Most U.S. oil and gas industry executives expect West 
Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil to end 2026 at $81 bbl, well above current 
levels amid improved outlooks and attendant cost pressures, the Dallas Federal 
Reserve said in a survey published Wednesday (6/24).

   For the longer term, WTI was forecast at $78 bbl by 2028 and $82 bbl five 
years from now. The Dallas Fed noted that the U.S. crude benchmark averaged 
$87.27 bbl during the time of the survey, which ran from June 10 to June 17.

   In NYMEX trading Wednesday, WTI for August delivery fell beneath $70 bbl at 
the session low as a pickup in oil and gas shipments previously blockaded on 
the Strait of Hormuz weighed on a market that hit a four-year high of nearly 
$120 bbl in March, during the height of the Iran war.

   "The Iran conflict, i.e., blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, is the wild card 
in speculating on future prices and development activity," an executive told 
the survey.

   Another lamented that the broader shipping constraints and geopolitical 
instability were making it difficult for service providers to accurately pass 
on rising expenses.

   "A fairly consistent theme is volatility and sector cost inflation, where 
commodity prices don't offset increased costs," the executive added.

    




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