Nymex Overview: Light Losses for Petroleum Futures Add to Week's Declines — OPIS

Crude oil and refined product futures prices were falling Friday, with contracts on track to end the week sharply lower.

The declines show markets continue to price in the possibility of a negotiated settlement between the United States and Iran and the impacts of U.S. Democrats' victory in Tuesday's midterm election.

U.S. crude prices were seeing small declines at about 11:20 a.m. ET Friday, with the December West Texas Intermediate crude contract down 7cts to $90.45/bbl while January prices were trading 11cts lower to $89.09/bbl.

Brent crude losses were more substantial, with the January contract sinking by 76cts to $97.53/bbl and February prices down 27cts to $94.64/bbl.

Crude prices are set to end the week about $16/bbl lower than last Friday.

ULSD futures were seeing more substantial declines for the day, with the December contract off by 3.41cts to $4.3120/gal while January prices were dropping by 3.74cts to $4.2092/gal. ULSD futures are down by about 36cts/gal for the week.

RBOB losses were light Friday, with the December contract easing lower by 0.25ct to $2.7609/gal and January futures falling by 0.15ct to $2.7148/gal.

For the week, however, RBOB futures are about 39cts lower.

Futures prices have been falling all week amid indications that leaders in the U.S. and Iran are both open to renewing negotiations aimed at ending the eight-month-old war. Democrats' seizing control of both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate in the midterm elections is also seen as an indication of increased pressure to end the fighting.

"Oil's decline was driven by expectations of progress in U.S.-Iran talks. The U.S. midterm election results then reinforced the view that Washington had more incentive to seek a diplomatic solution, easing some concerns about supply disruptions," said Linh Tran, a market Analyst at XS.com. "But so far, this remains largely a market expectation that has yet to materialize. And as the market recognizes that shipping safety is still not assured, oil prices could rebound if incidents emerge that threaten deliveries."

The declines in futures prices have provided some relief for U.S. motorists, with gasoline prices starting Friday nearly 14cts/gal lower than a week before.

At $4.0688/gal, the national average price of gasoline could fall below the $4/gal mark for the first time since mid-July in the coming week.

National average diesel prices are about 9cts/gal lower for the week, with prices at $6.2305/gal Friday morning. That's the lowest since mid-September.

This content was created by Oil Price Information Service, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. OPIS is run independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

Reporting by Steve Cronin, steven.cronin@dowjones.com; Editing by Dean Visser, dean.visser@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 06, 2026 12:13 ET (17:13 GMT)