New York crude oil futures extended their advance for a sixth consecutive session on September 8, driven by heightened Middle East tensions and concerns about disruptions to energy supplies. Front-month October West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude on NYMEX settled $1.55, or 1.7%, higher at $93.03 a barrel versus the September 4 close, after reaching $94.73, its highest level in approximately three months since early June. The move followed an attack on Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebel group that reportedly caused a fire at an energy facility in southern Saudi Arabia and forced a partial operational shutdown. Concerns also grew over the Strait of Hormuz, where seven commercial vessels transited on September 7, down from eight the previous day, according to Reuters. Brent crude rose 2.3% to $99.22 a barrel, prompting some traders to anticipate another test of the psychologically important $100 level. Oil's advance later lost momentum after President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call on September 8 and expressed willingness to make progress toward peace in Ukraine, raising expectations that geopolitical risk and petroleum supply-demand pressures could ease. Gold futures fell for a second session as markets continued to anticipate higher U.S. interest rates. December gold on COMEX settled $37.60, or 0.8%, lower at $4,439.0 an ounce, with upcoming inflation data, including the August CPI due September 11, potentially adding pressure to non-yielding gold. U.S. stocks also opened lower as investors assessed the risk that higher oil prices could revive inflation. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 511 points, or 0.7%, shortly after the open, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite opened down 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively. Traders are pricing a 60% probability of a 0.25 percentage point Federal Reserve rate increase, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Markets are also weighing Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on approximately $20 billion of U.S. goods, which took effect September 8, and President Trump’s statement that Bombardier would be barred from selling aircraft in the United States unless it manufactured them domestically. This week’s inflation releases and the Federal Reserve’s policy decision will be pivotal for crude, gold and equity markets.