BofA raises Brent forecast to $83 for second half of 2026
Oil prices opened the U.S. trading week higher as Iran-backed Houthis launched attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure. Ritterbusch & Associates said in a note that “a bullish trading stance still appears warranted, at least until some indication of renewed negotiations is forthcoming.” The firm added that the increase in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is “likely precluding another visit in Brent to the $120 level seen early in the war.”
Later in the session, David Grumhaus, chief investment officer at Duff & Phelps Investment Management, pointed to the difficulty of de-escalation. “It doesn’t seem like President Trump has any kind of good off-ramp here. And it feels like the Iranians despite the blockade feel they’re in a good negotiating position, and so it’s hard to see things getting resolved quickly,” Grumhaus said. With U.S. strategic oil reserves drawn down to low levels, future releases will have to be reduced, he added. “I think oil is likely to remain elevated.”
Bank of America lifted its forecasts, seeing Brent averaging $83 a barrel in the second half of 2026 and $75 in 2027. Previously the bank had expected Brent in a $70-$80 range in the second half and $70 for 2027. BofA still expects a gradual normalization of Strait of Hormuz flows but warned that “if skirmishes curbing oil flows continue into year-end, Brent could trade in a $95-$120/barrel range.”
Beyond oil, the day’s analyst roundup touched companies from the North Sea to Southeast Asia.
Ithaca Energy continues to target first oil from the Rosebank field in the first six months of 2027, Barclays analyst Naisheng Cui wrote after a fireside chat with Executive Chairman Yaniv Friedman at the Barclays CEO Energy-Power Conference. The development has been entangled in legal reviews but a decision is expected soon, and drilling is continuing, with the floating production, storage and offloading ship on-site. At its production plateau, Rosebank is expected to contribute around 10%-12% of group production, Cui wrote. Separately, Cui said Ithaca has three developments that could reach a final investment decision, and over 200 million barrels of oil equivalent in 2C resources heading for potential FID in 2026 and 2027. 2C reserves are those that have not yet met the threshold for commercial production. Shares closed Tuesday at 271.20 pence.
Doosan Enerbility’s potential participation in a U.S. gas power plant project could expand its footprint in the global gas turbine market, Nomura analysts Cindy Park and Dongmin Lee said. They expect the South Korean company to supply four 380-megawatt gas turbines for an initial phase of a 6.3-gigawatt gas power plant in Texas — part of the 2025 U.S.-South Korean investment deal. They expect Doosan to secure additional gas turbine orders as the multi-phase energy project advances. Nomura maintained a buy rating and a target price of 110,000 won. Shares rose 2.5% to 91,700 won.
Idemitsu Kosan’s earnings are likely to be supported by wider margins of export products, Jefferies analysts said. Earlier in 2026, an Iran-related crude supply shock forced Japanese refiners like Idemitsu to slow operations and prioritize domestic supply. That headwind is now reversing as alternative crude procurement has restored utilization, the U.S. bank said. A recovery in the Vietnam joint venture Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical is also a positive catalyst. Jefferies raised its rating on Idemitsu to buy from hold and its target price to 2,200 yen from 1,400 yen. Shares were up 5.4% at 1,626.5 yen.
Amplitude Energy’s intersection of natural gas with its Juliet-1 exploration well should spark relief among investors given two earlier setbacks in its drilling campaign, Jarden said. Its target price rose 9.7% to 2.03 Australian dollars a share to capture 50% of the unrisked valuation for Juliet of A$0.36 per share. “While some boxes remain to be ticked before we can call Juliet a gas discovery, all data released to date points to a positive outcome,” analyst Nik Burns said. Amplitude’s drilling campaign aims to find natural gas to support its East Coast Supply Project in southeastern Australia. Jarden rated the stock at overweight. Shares were up 1.1% at A$1.89 on Wednesday and up roughly 14% for the week.
French energy group Rubis reported an 18% rise in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization for the first half of the year and raised guidance on the metric to between 775 million and 825 million euros from 740 million to 790 million euros previously. Bernstein analysts Guillaume Delaby and Gareth Williams called the upgrade a positive surprise. “While activity may soften in 2H26, it is now unlikely to soften as much as we had feared following the company’s 1H26 pre-earning call,” they said. Bernstein has an outperform rating on the stock with a 38.70-euro target price. Shares rose 5.2% to 35.62 euros.
Separately, Malaysia’s 2027 budget could carry an election-friendly tone that benefits certain domestic-facing sectors, TA Securities analyst Kaladher Govindan said in a note. Likely priorities include rail infrastructure projects in Penang and Johor, flood-mitigation and water infrastructure, as well as AI, data centers and semiconductor manufacturing incentives. Cost-of-living relief is also probably on the table, he said. TA Securities flagged Gamuda, Tenaga Nasional, Telekom Malaysia, Nestle (Malaysia) and Sime Darby Property as among the companies that stand to gain.