Oil just hit a 5-month high! What does this mean for gold, stocks, and cryptos?



• The global oil benchmark breached $113/bbl for first time since May 19th; now +85% so far in 2026

• Supply fears rising on Iran's ramped-up attacks on the Strait of Hormuz; attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure

• Gold: Higher oil limits gold's upside, though XAUUSD+ supported above $4k by resilient central bank and ETF demand

• Stocks: Higher oil threatens to squeeze company profits, weighing down stock prices

• Cryptos: Higher oil may dampen market appetite for riskier assets, including cryptos



Brent oil just hit a 5-month high!



The global oil benchmark breached $113/bbl on Bybit's trading platform for the first time since May 19th, 2026, while restoring its year-to-date climb to 85%.

Here's what's driving oil prices higher:

• Iran is blocking shipping lanes. Iran is once again ramping up attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz - one of the world's most important oil routes - where 20% of the world's oil transited every day.

• Houthi rebels are hitting Saudi Arabia. Attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure are adding to fears of supply disruptions.

• A US-Iran deal looks unlikely before the US midterm elections to be held on November 3rd - exactly two weeks from today - keeping tensions high.

Markets are still concerned about tighter global oil supplies.

And that's despite US government officials saying that flows through the Strait of Hormuz have recovered to about 80% of pre-war levels.

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Of course, rising oil prices are felt worldwide - from pushing up transportation costs, to feeding global inflation.

The threat of faster inflation, or at least inflation remaining stubbornly high, is also prompting major central banks to raise interest rates.

Here's what higher oil means for major assets across global financial markets:



What Does Higher Oil Mean for Gold?



Gold is falling 0.4% today at the time of writing.

High oil prices fuel inflation fears, which could push the Fed to keep raising interest rates.

Higher rates make gold less attractive.

But there's a floor.

ETF investors and central banks keep buying gold as a safety net, which is limiting the drop in gold prices around the psychologically-important $4,000 level, so far.

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What Does Higher Oil Mean for US Stocks?



Higher oil means higher costs for businesses - from shipping to manufacturing, to higher interest rates - which squeezes profits.

Hence, no surprise that the SP500 is now down 0.2% while the NAS100 is 0.6% lower at the time of writing.

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What Does Higher Oil Mean for Cryptos?



Bitcoin is trading back below $82,000 today, down 0.7% on the day.

However, prices of the world's biggest and oldest crypto has been supported by its 50-day simple moving average (SMA) in recent sessions.

Still, here's the broader narrative:

When oil rises, inflation fears rise, and investors tend to avoid riskier assets like crypto.

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