WTI drifts higher above $73.00 on Middle East conflicts and hurricane risks

• WTI price climbs to near $73.20 in Thursday’s early European session. 
• The escalating Middle East geopolitical tensions and Hurricane Milton risks underpin the WTI price. 
• The worry about Chinese sluggish demand might cap the upside for oil prices. 

West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US crude oil benchmark, is trading around $73.20 on Thursday. The WTI price edges higher on the fears of oil supply disruptions in the Middle East amid the ongoing tensions and Hurricane Milton in the United States. 

A potential Israeli attack on Iranian oil infrastructure could boost the WTI price in the near term. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel’s retaliation to Iran’s missile attack would be “powerful, precise, and above all – surprising.” 

A severe hurricane that hit Florida has already increased demand for gasoline, with almost a quarter of fuel stations running out of supplies. This, in turn, helps to lift the black gold prices. 

US crude oil inventories rose more than expected last week. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), crude oil stockpiles in the United States for the week ending October 4 jumped by 5.81 million barrels, compared to a rise of 3.889 million barrels in the previous week. The market consensus estimated that stocks would increase by only 2 million barrels.

The World Bank projected China’s growth rate would drop to 4.3% next year, down from a forecast of 4.8% in 2024, citing concerns about weak Chinese consumer spending. Meanwhile, the US EIA on Tuesday downgraded its demand forecast for 2025 on weakening economic activity in China and North America. Investors have worried about slow growth dampening fuel demand in China, and this might cap the upside for the WTI for the time being as China is the world's largest crude importer.