Brent rises 1.3% to $115.36 after Houthis announce targeting Saudi refinery
Key Facts
Brent crude futures rose 1.3% to $115.36 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate climbed 1.22% to $101.12, at 0140 GMT on Wednesday, October 28, according to Reuters. The gains came after the Houthis announced on Tuesday that they had targeted Saudi Arabia’s largest oil refinery with a missile. Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the strike, Reuters reported. The Dutch TTF gas contract, the European benchmark, rose 1.2% to 97.35 euros per megawatt-hour, its highest level in nearly four years. The move in oil brought supply concerns back into focus, while the European gas market faces low storage and competition for LNG cargoes as the heating season begins.
Wednesday’s rise coincided with a recovery in oil prices after they fell by nearly $2 on Tuesday, when Middle East talks eased concerns about supply, Reuters reported. This reflects a shift in market attention between the risk of supply disruptions from attacks and signs of diplomatic de-escalation. Reuters said the Houthis announced that they had targeted the Saudi refinery, but the Saudi authorities’ failure to confirm the strike immediately meant the report remained attributed to the group’s announcement. The Wall Street Journal reported on a U.S. warning to Gulf states about a potential campaign after the midterm elections, according to Reuters’ summary of the article. The report could not be verified directly, so this summary does not establish a final U.S. decision or a confirmed timeline for any action.
In the gas market, data from the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas showed that EU underground gas storage was 72% full on October 1, following an injection season the network described as difficult. Storage covered about 26% of European gas consumption during the winter of 2025/26, compared with about 30% in the winter of 2024/25. The comparison highlights the lower contribution of storage to meeting consumption between the two seasons, as the region enters a period when demand is affected by temperatures. The network said the EU’s capacity to regasify liquefied natural gas is about 1,600 terawatt-hours per winter season, equivalent to about 145 billion cubic metres. This capacity can partly offset lower storage levels, but it makes cargo availability an important factor in balancing supply.
The European network warned that continued constraints on LNG supplies could drive storage to levels far below 30% by the end of the winter of 2026/27. This scenario could amplify the impact of late cold spells and could also constrain storage replenishment during the following summer. The outlook for winter demand also depends on the weather, while Europe and Asia compete for spot LNG cargoes during the heating season, according to an assessment by the EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators. The agency says storage is below historical levels, and that disruption to LNG flows related to the conflict and slow replenishment are among the factors putting pressure on the market. These factors indicate that the course of the European gas market is shaped by supply availability and the pace of storage as much as by daily price movements.
In the oil market, a Reuters poll of eight analysts forecast that U.S. crude inventories rose by about 15,000 barrels in the week ended October 23. The estimate comes as inventory indicators are tracked alongside concerns linked to the announced attack on the Saudi refinery. On supply, informed sources expect OPEC+ producers to keep December production targets unchanged at their meeting on Sunday, November 1. The upcoming meeting puts the production decision among the key indicators traders will watch after Wednesday’s gains. Developments in Gulf supplies and LNG availability also remain among the factors shaping the direction of energy markets in the near term.