Brent Rises to Near $92 as Iran Refuses to Ship Out Enriched Uranium, While CoreWeave Lifts S&P 500 1.1%

As Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy reported tanker mine strikes in the Strait of Hormuz and talks with Washington stalled, oil moved back up on Wednesday, Nov. 11. Brent crude rose about 1% to $92.39 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate gained 0.27% to $86.27, recovering part of Tuesday's drop of more than $3.

The push came from Tehran. Iran's security chief said the country would not allow any enriched nuclear material to leave its territory, which cast fresh doubt on a diplomatic deal with the US. Tuesday's slide had come after US officials played down the need for further military action against Iran.

Hormuz still the pressure point

The shipping picture has not improved. The Washington Institute for Near East Policy counted 37 ships attacked in October, the highest monthly total since the war began. A tanker was struck northeast of Lima in Oman, and the IRGC Navy said two tankers caught fire after hitting naval mines in the strait.

There is some supply-side relief. Kpler puts Middle East crude and condensate outages at about 3.8 million barrels a day, down from earlier peaks. Saudi and Iraqi crude output is back at pre-war levels, and OPEC+ production rose in October.

A drone attack also started a fire at Russia's Ust-Luga port, according to local officials. That added to the supply worries.

AI trade takes over the tape

Oil was not the main driver of equities. CoreWeave was.

The cloud provider reported third-quarter revenue of $3.66 billion, up 168% from a year earlier, and a record $132.5 billion backlog of contracted future revenue. It said it expects to turn profitable in 2028 and promised no additional parent-level unsecured debt through 2027. Its shares were up 23% in Reuters' figures. Goldman Sachs analyst Gabriela Borges called the update the start of a rerating, even though the company guided to a heavy interest bill.

The lift spread. The S&P 500 technology sector rose 2.9%. Nvidia gained about 4%, and neocloud names Nebius and Iren advanced.

The broad indexes, per Reuters' tallies:

• S&P 500: up 1.12% to 7,605.33
• Nasdaq Composite: up 1.66% to 25,483.04
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: up 0.03% to 52,248.80

The move reversed Tuesday, when the S&P 500 fell 0.4% to 7,521 and the Nasdaq dropped about 0.7% after the inflation report.

The caution flags

Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities, called it "a relief rally" and said whether it lasts "depends on the situation with Nvidia." That situation includes mounting scrutiny in Washington of CEO Jensen Huang over his lobbying for looser AI chip sales to China, after reports alleging a Chinese spying operation targeted him. Beijing called the accusations "groundless." Nvidia has said its board has no reason to believe US national security or company secrets were compromised, and that Huang has committed to cooperating with the internal review.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said the AI trade could face further challenges even if the Anthropic offering succeeds.

That offering is the next big test. Anthropic plans to raise nearly $64 billion in an IPO expected later this month, below an earlier estimate of $100 billion. Its filing shows third-quarter revenue of $17 billion versus $1.4 billion a year earlier. The Financial Times reported that the company's bankers are weighing pricing above the announced $70 to $78 range, which could push the valuation to $1.5 trillion or more from an earlier target near $1.4 trillion.

Inflation and the Fed

The rally sits on top of a problem it did not fix. October consumer prices rose 0.4%, above the 0.3% economists expected, and core prices rose 0.3%, also above forecasts. The 10-year Treasury yield briefly topped 5% Tuesday, and the 2-year saw its biggest one-day jump since April 2025.

Fed Governor Christopher Waller had said before the report that a 0.3% core reading could lead him to consider a 50-basis-point hike. Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan also backed a strong response to persistent price pressures. Markets now price an 87% chance of a 25-basis-point increase in December and a 12.9% chance of 50 basis points, up from zero before the data.

The cash Treasury market was closed Wednesday for Veterans Day, so bond yields did not trade. The dollar strengthened, and spot gold fell 1.15% to $3,984.39 an ounce, extending Tuesday's near-3% decline.

The Fed's December decision and the Anthropic pricing later this month are the next hard tests. Both land while Hormuz shipping risk keeps oil near $92.