NEW YORK, May 18, 2026, 6:57 AM EDT
- Ether dropped close to $2,100 while oil prices jumped, driven by worries over Middle East supply.
- Tom Lee says crude oil is now Ethereum’s main near-term headwind.
- The risk goes beyond oil. ETH is also seeing pressure from ETF outflows, whale selling, and risk-off trading.
Ether dropped Monday after Fundstrat’s Tom Lee pointed to surging oil as the main short-term drag on Ethereum. Lee linked the token’s latest selloff to a broader move away from risk assets.
Oil topping $100 a barrel is putting inflation fears back on the table and comes as crypto traders hoped for some rebound in Ether after a long stretch of underperformance. Ethereum is down 3.5% to $2,115, while Bitcoin is off 2.1% at $76,784.
Lee said on X that “rising oil prices is the biggest headwind” for Ether, and noted ETH is showing its biggest negative correlation with oil ever. When assets are negatively correlated, they usually move opposite each other. X (formerly Twitter)
Oil and bond yields rose after new drone attacks in the Gulf. Reuters said Brent was last near $110.50 a barrel and U.S. crude at $106.72. The Strait of Hormuz, which usually handles around 20% of the world’s oil and gas trade, stayed mostly shut to shipping.
Lee said cheaper oil could help Ether bounce, describing the current swing as “short-term tactical noise.” He pointed to tokenization and agentic AI as Ethereum’s main forces. Agentic AI means software that can act or pay for users. Tokenization puts claims on funds, property or securities onto a blockchain. crypto.news
Stocks were on shaky ground. U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social Sunday that “the Clock is Ticking” on Iran, fueling investor worries over failed negotiations and a possible drawn-out energy shock. Reuters
Ether’s slump isn’t just about oil. Andri Fauzan Adziima, research lead at Bitrue Research Institute, told Cointelegraph crude was “one key macro headwind,” but pointed to ETF outflows, more coins on exchanges, whale selling, weaker risk appetite and ETH trailing Bitcoin as other reasons the token is struggling. TradingView
The gap is important. Bitcoin is still the main liquidity anchor for crypto investors during stress. Ether acts more like a high-beta risk trade, moving with macro selling and also hit by doubts about institutional demand.
Bullish bets on Ethereum are still possible, but they depend on more factors now. Lee says tokenization and payments from AI could help Ethereum in 2026. For now, traders are focused on oil and whether it drops before ETH falls below $2,000-$2,100.
Crude might not rebound. A long Hormuz closure or more Gulf attacks could leave energy prices higher, which could keep bond yields up. That would make it tougher for Ether and other speculative trades to attract new money.
AP said ING commodities strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey wrote “re-escalation risks are increasing,” with a note that shipping activity near the strait has picked up but could shift fast. That puts Ether traders in a spot—they face a macro risk that can’t be hedged just using crypto. apnews.com
