New York, March 2, 2026, 10:56 EST — Regular session
Chevron Corporation picked up 1.3% to $189.12 Monday morning, lifted by a more than 6% rally in crude oil futures. Shares touched $191.44 at the session high and bottomed at $187.22. Volume was around 3.1 million shares. Exxon Mobil edged up roughly 0.7%.
Oil and gas prices spiked, with Brent briefly jumping 13% to $82.37 a barrel before pulling back to $79.14, still up 8.6%. U.S. WTI settled 7.5% higher at $72.07. The surge followed Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran and retaliatory moves from Tehran that shut energy sites throughout the Middle East and disrupted traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for nearly 20% of global oil. “Markets are acknowledging the seriousness of the conflict, but are also signalling that, for now, this is a geopolitical shock, not a systemic crisis,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior analyst at Phillip Nova. OPEC+, which includes Russia and its allies, decided on Sunday to increase April output by 206,000 barrels a day. Reuters
This hits CVX squarely—investors often see major oil names as a quick proxy for crude and a shield when other risks flare. Energy shares stood out in early trading, with the S&P 500 slipping roughly 0.5%, leaving the sector among the rare patches of green.
Chevron faces operational risks in the area as well. Israeli authorities ordered the company to halt production at the Leviathan gas field off Israel’s coast, a site where Chevron is in the midst of boosting capacity to 21 billion cubic metres a year under a $35 billion export agreement with Egypt. The company said its sites remain secure. QatarEnergy, on the other hand, suspended LNG output and prepared to invoke force majeure, which allows companies to pause deliveries after uncontrollable incidents. “The attack on Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura refinery marks a significant escalation, with Gulf energy infrastructure now squarely in Iran’s sights,” said Torbjorn Soltvedt, principal Middle East analyst at Verisk Maplecroft. Reuters
Asian importers are feeling the pinch on the logistics front. With roughly 60% of the region’s oil coming from the Middle East, reduced flows through the Hormuz chokepoint are getting impossible to ignore—shippers are backing off. “Transit volumes have already declined with vessels parking outside the Strait,” according to Citi analysts. Reuters
But Chevron’s upside isn’t straightforward. Should crude prices drop off or supply issues resolve sooner than expected, any risk premium could vanish in a hurry—pulling energy stocks down with it.
If the disruption drags on, costs can climb throughout the chain—shipping, refined-product demand, the works—which tends to pinch profits downstream, even if pricing upstream gets a lift. Chevron is exposed in both directions.
Traders are on alert for updates about when Gulf shipping routes or major gas fields might come back online—and how much longer the market will shell out for geopolitical risk in crude. So far, the headline tape is pushing the stock around more than actual company developments.
March 5 is the date to watch: that’s when a batch of war-risk policy cancellations from marine insurers kicks in, squeezing coverage options for the Gulf and nearby waters. “TD3C rates were rising exponentially before the attacks and will continue to remain elevated,” said Emril Jamil, senior analyst at LSEG, pointing to the key Middle East-to-China oil route. Reuters
