USO: The World's Most Consequential Energy Trade
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut and the IEA warning of the largest supply disruption in history, USO has become the world's most consequential energy trade. Sophia Marquez maps the oil shock from Persian Gulf chokepoints to Fed policy timelines.
Technical Overview
The United States Oil Fund closed at $118.31 on March 13, 2026, consolidating just beneath its 52-week high of $124.07 after a historic week that saw the fund briefly breach $124 intraday on March 9. The six-month price chart tells a story in two distinct acts: a prolonged basing period between September and late February — USO traded in a relatively tight band between $67 and $82, the commodity cycle signaling quiet accumulation before the inflection — followed by a near-vertical markup beginning on February 28 when U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran ignited the most acute oil supply shock in modern market history. In a matter of twelve sessions, USO surged from $81.95 to an intraday peak of $124.07, a move exceeding 50% that compressed months of price action into days.
