Oil climbs to a two-week high; stocks hold near Friday's levels
Brent topped $106 after Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy sites, keeping a lid on tech shares.
Oil · Monday, October 12, 2026 · 12:30 PM ET
Brent crude rose above $106 a barrel on Monday, a two-week high, even after President Trump's "energy ceasefire" announcement, while US stocks held near Friday's levels (Reuters, Yahoo Finance, AP).
Why oil is up
Yahoo Finance says Brent rose to about $106 and WTI to about $93 after Russia struck Ukrainian power plants, following Trump's statement that Russia and Ukraine had agreed not to target each other's energy infrastructure. CNBC also noted Russia struck a power plant shortly after the announcement. Reuters says Brent traded above $106 after the deadly strikes on Riyadh's international airport over the weekend. AP had Brent up 1.9% at $106.70 early in the session. Our earlier stories: Zelenskyy says Russia broke the ceasefire and oil eases after the diesel deal. Earlier in the morning, oil had dipped.
Reuters reports that Trump said Saturday the US was considering joining Saudi strikes on the Houthis (via Arab News). The US and Israel launched a war with Iran in February, and the Houthi attacks are described as a spillover (Reuters via Arab News).
Stocks and energy shares
As of 11:31 AM ET the Dow was up 0.49% at 51,909, the S&P 500 down 0.06% at 7,807 and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.37% at 27,265, with technology weaker, according to The Motley Fool; the 10-year Treasury yield was 5.24% (Motley Fool). Energy stocks added 1.8% in the S&P 500 (Reuters), and Investor's Business Daily said ExxonMobil was nearing a buy point as oil climbed. Salesforce helped lift the Dow to a near three-week high (Reuters).
Big banks report Tuesday and September CPI is due Wednesday; see our week-ahead story.