Oil Rises Above $100 as Bitcoin and Gold Slip Before Fed

Crude oil prices climbed on Monday, with Brent up 2.75% at $107.48 and West Texas Intermediate up 2.51% at $102.56, as traders positioned for the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision on Wednesday. Bitcoin, gold and several industrial metals fell on the same day.

The oil rise followed disruptions to supply after damage to a major Saudi pipeline late last week. That route allows shipments to avoid the Strait of Hormuz; operators estimate the outage could threaten as much as 4% of global oil output. Additional incidents reported in the region included Houthi attacks on Saudi territory, an attack on a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, and Houthi movements to Perim island, which affects control of the Bab el-Mandeb shipping lane that carries about 4% to 5% of global supply. Crude finished the week about 8% higher and moved above $100 for the first time since July, extending a rally that began earlier in the summer.

Talks planned in Oman between Gulf states and Iran were scheduled for Monday but were postponed, the Omani foreign minister confirmed. Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG, wrote that unless the Oman discussions produce operational outcomes, crude could extend gains toward the $119.48 high from early March.

Hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data increased expectations for tighter Fed policy. Traders priced roughly an 86.3% chance that the central bank will raise its target rate to 375–400 basis points in upcoming decisions, up from 59.4% a week earlier and 33.9% a month earlier. Those shifts affected risk assets and metals.

Crypto markets lost value over the 24 hours to Monday, with total market capitalization down about 4.32% to $2.62 trillion. Bitcoin traded near $76,718 after a 4.4% weekly slide. Ethereum fell 1.79% to $2,478.43. Precious and industrial metals also declined: gold eased 0.22% to $4,340.58, silver dropped 0.25% to $64.11 and copper fell 1.08% to $6.40.

Market participants said crude was moving largely on supply and geopolitical developments in key shipping corridors, while crypto and metals were reacting to changes in expectations about U.S. interest-rate policy. Traders will monitor the Fed decision on Wednesday for indications on whether those drivers will continue to diverge.