Brent Rebounds 4% to $100; BP Chairman Manifold Removed Over Governance Concerns
Brent crude futures rose 4% to $100.40 a barrel as US strikes on Iran deflated hopes of an imminent deal, clawing back about half of Monday’s near-10% drop. West Texas Intermediate fell 2% to $94.19 a barrel compared with Friday’s settlement — US markets had been closed Monday for Memorial Day. The FTSE 100 closed up 0.24% at 10,491.39, a five-week high, but oil major BP fell 4% after the company removed Chairman Albert Manifold with immediate effect over “serious” concerns about “important governance standards, oversight and conduct”. Shell, by contrast, gained on the higher oil price.
The BP statement said the board removed Chairman Manifold “with immediate effect” after serious concerns were raised about governance standards, oversight and conduct — without further detail. The exit comes at the most operationally consequential moment for the oil major since the war began: Brent volatility has been the dominant macro variable for FTSE 100 valuations, BP’s Q1 earnings beat depended on the elevated oil price, and the chairman question now intersects directly with the corporate-governance side of the Iran-war supply-shock. Russ Mould, AJ Bell investment director, noted that the FTSE 100’s catch-up rally after the bank holiday was “kept in check” by the overnight strikes and continued doubts about the deal architecture.