Crude oil futures traded higher on Wednesday morning as tensions re-emerged between the US and Iran after the US shot down an Iranian drone near an aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.
At 9.57 am on Wednesday, April Brent oil futures were at $67.84, up by 0.76 per cent, and March crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $63.79, up by 0.92 per cent.
February crude oil futures were trading at ₹5781 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹5709, up by 1.26 per cent, and March futures were trading at ₹5773 against the previous close of ₹5696, up by 1.35 per cent.
In their Commodities Feed for Wednesday, Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy of ING Think, and Ewa Manthey, Commodities Strategist, said oil prices are trading firmer on Wednesday morning, after settling 1.55 per cent higher on Tuesday.
Tensions between the US and Iran have re-emerged after the US shot down an Iranian drone flying near a US aircraft carrier.
In addition, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened to seize a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.
Despite these incidents, US President Donald Trump said negotiations are ongoing. The White House also said that the US-Iran talks are still scheduled for Friday. Uncertainty about how these talks will play out means the market will likely continue to price in some risk premium, they said.
It is also worth monitoring developments in Iraq amid growing disagreement between the White House and the Iraqi government.
Politicians in Iraq want to appoint Nouri Al-Malaki as the next prime minister. The US administration feels Al-Malaki is too closely aligned with Iran, which has Trump threatening diplomatic and economic consequences, they said.
Meanwhile, an industry data showed a huge decline in crude oil inventories in the US for the week ending January 30. According to the industry body American Petroleum Institute (API), US crude oil inventories declined by 11.1 million barrels for the week ending January 30.
ING Thinks’ Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey said, gasoline inventories increased by 4.7 million barrels, while distillate fuel oil stocks fell by 4.8 million barrels. This reflects the impact of a recent winter storm hitting large parts of the US. It affected energy infrastructure and boosted heating demand, they said.
Official data from the US EIA (Energy Information Administration) is expected later on Wednesday.
February natural gas futures were trading at ₹301.90 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹301.60, up by 0.10 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), February guargum contracts were trading at ₹10400 in the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹10359, up by 0.40 per cent.
April dhaniya futures were trading at ₹11780 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Wednesday against the previous close of ₹11834, down by 0.46 per cent.
Published on February 4, 2026
