Azeri Light Oil Prices Rise Amid Iran Strait Tensions

Prices for Azerbaijan's Azeri Light crude oil rose on August 28, reaching $92.32 per barrel on a CIF basis at Italy's Augusta port and $89 per barrel on an FOB basis at Türkiye's Ceyhan port. Other benchmarks followed this upward trend, with Dated Brent rising to $89.22 and Urals crude reaching $64.97. These figures remain substantially higher than the $65 per barrel average projected in the 2026 state budget of the Government of Azerbaijan.

Market volatility persists as traders monitor the Strait of Hormuz. While Goldman Sachs reports that Persian Gulf oil exports have recovered to 15–16 million barrels per day, geopolitical instability continues to pressure prices. The federal government of the United States, under the Trump administration, has informed mediators that it will not return to the terms of a preliminary deal with Iran reached in June.

Simultaneously, Iran and Oman reached a revenue distribution agreement regarding the strategic waterway. However, Tehran stated that this specific deal does not guarantee the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, leaving the primary shipping route in a state of uncertainty.