CNBC Daily Open: Oil markets: Nice try on the reserve release

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A dark smoke cloud engulfs destroyed vehicles near an ongoing fire following an overnight airstrike on the Shahran oil refinery in northwestern Tehran on March 8, 2026.

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Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.

While I am a CNBC veteran, today marks my first Daily Open newsletter, so bear with me as I find my feet. In the London newsroom this morning, it’s no surprise that oil is on everyone’s mind — especially when historic shock and awe moves from global energy agencies fail to turn the market tide.

You can subscribe to the EMEA edition of the Daily Open here_. _

What you need to know today

It was an unprecedented move from the International Energy Agency and U.S. administration, but according to markets, it was not enough. Oil prices are surging once again, with Brent crude topping $100 per barrel on Thursday despite the IEA agreeing to a historic release of a record 400 million barrels of oil. The U.S. also said it would tap 172 million barrels from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help lower energy costs.

The energy picture is complicated by another development — Iran has continued to send large amounts of crude oil via the Strait of Hormuz to China even as the war between U.S.-Israel and Iran has jeopardized broader supplies through the critical waterway.

Global equities remain sensitive to the energy moves. Asia-Pacific markets fell Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 leading the declines. European stocks are expected to open lower, while U.S. futures are also pointing to another negative session.

The war that continues to rage in Iran has not distracted President Donald Trump from his trade war. The U.S. administration on Wednesday launched trade probes into more than a dozen countries, with the goal of replacing the reciprocal tariffs, which were recently ruled illegal by the Supreme Court. The main targets are the EU, China and Mexico, alongside a slew of other nations including Switzerland, Norway, Japan, India and South Korea.

In other words, energy markets are volatile, supply chains are tightening and trade tensions are heating up (again). Global markets rarely enjoy juggling all three at once.

— Leonie Kidd

And finally…

How the Iran war could impact hyperscalers’ massive AI buildout in the Middle East

Tech companies have been funneling billions of dollars into AI infrastructure projects in the Middle East over the past few years, drawn in by cheap and readily available energy and land, alongside local government support.

But the Iran war spilling over into neighbouring countries in the Middle East throws questions over the future of the data center and digital infrastructure buildout in the region, particularly if it becomes a prolonged conflict, experts told CNBC.

Data centers have already been targeted, causing banking, payments, enterprise and consumer services to experience outages.

— Kai Nicol-Schwarz

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