At 6:15 a.m. Eastern Time, Brent crude oil was $95.40 per barrel, up $1.80 from the previous morning and $28.19 from a year earlier. The price was 1.92% above yesterday's $93.60, 4.61% above its $91.19 level a month ago and 41.94% above its $67.21 level a year ago. Supply and demand remain the main drivers, while expectations for future production and consumption, geopolitics, conflict, OPEC+ decisions, recession concerns and U.S. drilling policy can cause sharp swings. Brent is the principal global oil benchmark, while West Texas Intermediate is North America's main benchmark; Brent is widely used to assess global crude performance and is the primary reference in the U.S. Energy Information Administration's Annual Energy Outlook. Crude oil typically accounts for more than half of gasoline's retail price, with refining, wholesale distribution, taxes and station margins making up the remainder. Higher oil prices generally reach the pump quickly, while declines often pass through more slowly in the pattern known as the "rockets and feathers" effect. The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve can help protect energy supplies and cushion sudden disruptions, but it is an emergency measure rather than a long-term solution. Higher oil prices may also increase natural-gas demand where industries can substitute gas for oil. Oil prices have historically been shaped by wars, supply cuts, recessions, oversupply, OPEC policies and energy initiatives, including the 1970s oil shock, the mid-1980s decline, the 2008 spike and crash, and the fall below $20 per barrel during the 2020 COVID lockdown. Futures-market trading can change prices continuously while markets are open, and increased U.S. shale production can add supply and reduce the risk of sharp spikes. Expensive oil can lift inflation through household energy bills and transportation costs. In 2025, the Trump administration moved to reopen more than 1.5 million acres in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas leasing, reversing the Biden administration's policy of limiting oil drilling in the Arctic.