Article · Geopolitics · Energy
Hormuz has half reopened, and the Houthis are hitting the bypass. Why Brent is holding near 110 dollars and what it means for diesel in Europe
On 19 October 2026 Brent crude settled at 109.55 dollars a barrel, after rallying to a five-month high the week before (Reuters). Two things keep oil high. First, the Strait of Hormuz is partly working again, but Iran's Revolutionary Guard reports tankers hitting mines, and Reuters, citing Kpler, says flows fell to about 8.5 million barrels a day over the past week. Second, Yemen's Houthis are attacking Saudi Arabia, which has been exporting more oil via the Red Sea: on 14 October an Aramco building in Dhahran was hit, and on 19 October the Houthis claimed strikes on oil sites at Yanbu and Shaybah, which Saudi Arabia has not confirmed. The International Energy Agency wrote on 14 October that delivered diesel prices in Europe could rise again in the coming weeks. In Lithuania, diesel averaged 2.226 euros a litre on 14 October (LEA).
Brent crude settled at 109.55 dollars a barrel on 19 October 2026. During the session it had fallen by more than 3 dollars, then recovered almost all of it. In its October report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) warns that delivered diesel prices in Europe could rise again in the coming weeks.
On 5 September we wrote about what a closed Hormuz costs Europe. Three things have changed since: the strait has partly reopened, Gulf producers have restored most of their exports, and the war has moved to the bypass that Saudi Arabia uses to ship oil around Hormuz. ([Stakyco, 2026-09-05](/nariams/straipsniai/hormuzas-ka-kainuoja-europai))