As of August 18, 2026 at 6:45 a.m. Eastern Time, oil was trading at $92.42 per barrel based on the Brent benchmark, up $0.89 from the previous morning and $25.68 higher than a year ago. Oil prices are primarily driven by supply and demand, but they are also influenced by geopolitical factors and OPEC decisions. Crude oil accounts for over half of the pump price, and when oil prices rise, gas prices typically follow, though they decrease more slowly. The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve can be deployed to cushion supply shocks and stabilize prices during emergencies.
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