US crude oil prices pass $100 per barrel as Trump says war in Iran will end after midterms

The West Texas Intermediate price of oil, the U.S. benchmark, hit $101.53 per barrel Thursday morning. 

The last time WTI prices broke the $100 per barrel mark was in May. They fell to pre-war levels in early July following the announcement of an interim peace agreement with Iran. That agreement has since expired, and global markets are responding as hostilities continue. 

President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday before he headed into the Republican Party's midterm convention that the war in Iran would end "immediately after the election," CNBC reported. Trump also said energy prices would, right after the election, begin "tumbling down." 

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that top White House advisors have discussed with Trump the possibility the war would drag on through the remainder of his term. In the Oval Office and Situation Room, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and others have discussed, according to the Journal's sources, that Iran could resist the blockade and military tactics to extend the war into 2029. 

Average U.S. gasoline prices rose nearly $0.06 per gallon between Wednesday and Thursday, according to AAA. Fuel prices typically respond to rising oil prices slowly, so the increases this week are likely just the beginning of a sustained rise over the coming weeks.