Brent crude prices extended their decline on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, falling 0.82% to $98.44 a barrel as expectations of a gradual restart of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline eased concerns over prolonged supply disruptions.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US benchmark, also fell 1.34% to $89.31 a barrel.
The latest declines extend a multi-day sell-off that has taken both benchmarks to fresh multi-week lows following the sharp rally earlier in September.
Market sentiment has improved as Saudi Arabia signals progress towards restarting its East-West pipeline, a key route for transporting crude from the kingdom’s eastern oil fields to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
The pipeline has been shut for about two weeks after drone strikes damaged pumping stations. Reports indicate that flows have begun restarting at a reduced rate and could reach around 40% of capacity within days.
A full restoration of pre-attack flows, estimated at roughly 4 million barrels per day, could still take several weeks.
The prospect of recovering pipeline flows has reduced fears that the disruption will result in a prolonged shortage of Saudi crude. Rising Saudi loadings through the Strait of Hormuz and alternative ship-to-ship transfers have also helped ease immediate concerns about physical supply.
Brent had climbed sharply earlier in September as attacks on regional energy infrastructure raised fears of a wider Middle East supply disruption.
On September 15, Brent traded at $105.70 a barrel while WTI stood at $101.70, following several sessions of gains driven by concerns over regional supply.
Prices have since retreated as the market reassesses the extent and duration of the disruption.
Improving physical supply conditions, together with hopes for diplomatic engagement between the United States and Iran during the United Nations General Assembly, have also reduced some of the geopolitical risk premium in crude prices.
