Brent crude was reportedly near $111 a barrel on October 20 amid Middle East tensions

An October 20 market post put Brent near $111 a barrel, attributing the price to Houthi attacks, Hormuz tensions and supply fears. It contrasted a U.S. tech-led rebound with falling Indian stocks, saying elevated crude weighed on India's market. Separately, a post quoting the Wall Street Journal said Gulf-to-China supertanker freight was near a record $37.37 per barrel that week; its author called that a 33% markup over Brent and questioned the benchmark's usefulness.