WTI crude reversed higher and climbed back above $90 after reports of Iranian ballistic missile launches. That marks a sharp turnaround from the $79 low hit on Aug 26. The rally has since stalled just under a $92.87-$93.50 resistance band, and the market is now testing whether the pullback is corrective or the start of a deeper reversal.
Iran missile reports drive oil higher
WTI crude futures reversed higher after reports that Iran launched ballistic missiles. Iran has said it is shifting to a pre-emptive doctrine, and the country continues struggling to disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The move marks a sharp reversal from just over a week ago: on Aug 26, WTI traded as low as $79, but it has since climbed back above $90. Earlier in the session, some of that upside pressure had been offset by a report that Kushner and Witkoff will visit Moscow and Kyiv this weekend in a renewed push for peace negotiations — their first visit to Kyiv since Russia's 2022 invasion began. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said he saw a "new dynamic" coming in peace efforts.
Rally runs into a technical ceiling
Crude built on last week's momentum after closing near $83.50, then broke above $86.60 — a level marked by both the 100-day moving average and the 38.2% retracement of the decline from the April 2026 high to the July 2026 low. Clearing that cluster shifted the technical bias firmly toward buyers.
That opened the door to the next resistance zone, defined by the 50% midpoint of the April-to-July decline at $92.87 and a series of swing highs near $93.50 going back to mid-June. Crude reached a high of $93.14 before rotating modestly lower, and the $92.87-$93.50 band remains a key ceiling for the bullish trend to continue.
Pullback holds above key support
The retreat pushed crude down to and briefly below its rising 100-hour moving average, currently near $89.62. Trading above that level keeps buyers in control, while a sustained break below it would give sellers more confidence.
On the five-minute chart, the decline stalled before reaching the 38.2% retracement of the rally from the Aug 26 low, at $88.00, a level that also sits at a round number. The day's low reached $88.72, comfortably above that support, before price rotated back to the upside. Holding above the 38.2% retracement suggests the decline was corrective rather than the start of a deeper bearish reversal, though buyers still have work to do.
Sources: Investinglive, Investinglive
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