SEATTLE (Oil Monster): Goldman Sachs has raised its crude oil price forecasts for the fourth quarter of 2026, lifting Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) targets by $6 each to $60 and $56 a barrel respectively, as lower-than-expected OECD inventory levels tighten the market outlook.
For the full year, Goldman now projects Brent to average $64 a barrel, up from a prior forecast of $56, while WTI is expected to average $60, compared with $52 previously. The revisions come even as the bank continues to assume no Iran-related supply disruption and maintains its forecast of a 2026 global oil market surplus of 2.3 million barrels per day (bpd).
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Goldman also noted downgrades to 2026 supply outlooks for Kazakhstan, Venezuela, Iran and Iraq due to production misses, while raising supply expectations in the Americas and core OPEC producers with spare capacity.
The bank expects OPEC+ to begin increasing output in the second quarter of 2026 but warned of downside risks of about $5 for Brent and $8 for WTI if sanctions relief for Iran or Russia accelerates supply. Goldman forecasts Brent and WTI to average $65 and $61 in 2027, rising toward $70 and $66 by year-end 2027 as demand strengthens and supply growth slows.
