On the morning of April 13, USO shares were up 7.3% in pre-market trading and headed toward $134 before the majority of American retail traders had even made their first cup of coffee. The previous Friday’s closing price was $124.82. $143.98 was the 52-week high from the previous week. In May 2025, the 52-week low was $61.75. When you combine those three figures, you have an asset that has more than doubled in a year, reached a record high just a week ago, slightly declined, and is now rising once more following the announcement that peace negotiations between the US and Iran broke down over the weekend and a blockade of Hormuz started.
If one were to look at the fund’s price chart alone, without reading the geopolitical news, it might appear to be a tale of technological advancement. It is, in fact, a product that is totally controlled by the price of crude oil futures, and at the moment, one of the most disruptive energy crises the world market has seen in decades is influencing those futures.
The first oil ETF was called USO. It was established in April 2006 and maintains exposure by rolling forward a small portfolio of short-term NYMEX futures contracts on West Texas Intermediate crude oil on a rolling schedule. With $2.64 billion in assets, a 0.70% expense ratio, and a beta of 2.07 against broader market indices, the fund moves about twice as aggressively in both directions as the typical market.
USO has always provided the easiest route for investors who wish to be exposed to oil prices without having to open a commodities brokerage account or deal with the intricacy of trading futures directly. The current environment simultaneously highlights the real value and limitations of that simplicity.
| United States Oil Fund (USO) — Key Information | |
|---|---|
| Fund Name | United States Oil Fund, LP |
| Ticker / Exchange | USO / NYSE Arca |
| Issuer | USCF Investments |
| Inception Date | April 10, 2006 |
| Fund Type | Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) — Commodities Focused |
| Underlying Asset | Primarily short-term NYMEX WTI crude oil futures contracts |
| Recent Price (April 10, 2026) | $124.82 — down 1.69% |
| Pre-Market (April 13, 2026) | $133.93 — up +7.30% |
| 52-Week Range | $61.75 — $143.98 |
| 52-Week High Date | April 7, 2026 |
| YTD Return | +80.48% |
| 1-Year Return | +91.09% |
| 3-Month Return | +69.87% |
| Total Assets (AUM) | ~$2.64 billion |
| Beta (5-Year Monthly) | 2.07 |
| Expense Ratio | 0.70% |
| Number of Holdings | 9 |
| Dividend Yield | None |
| Average Daily Volume | ~33–43 million shares |
| Key Risk | Contango — rolling futures contracts can erode returns over time |
Before analyzing the return numbers, it is important to comprehend the structural limitations. Crude oil barrels are not held by USO. Futures contracts are held by it, and they expire. The fund purchases contracts for the upcoming month and sells near-term contracts that are about to expire each month. This rolling process costs money each time it occurs in a market condition known as contango, where futures for future months are priced higher than the current contract.
The fund is essentially buying high and selling low on a mechanical schedule, which reduces returns in relation to the oil spot price over time. Because of this, USO’s 10-year return since its founding is actually negative at -7.02%, despite the fact that the price of crude oil has fluctuated greatly during that time. The silent drag that is evident in the fund’s long-term track record but not in its recent performance is the contango cost accumulated over years.
The market is currently structured differently. Due to the physical shortage of barrels brought on by the U.S.-Iran conflict, backwardation—the practice of trading near-term contracts at a premium to later ones—has taken hold. Because the fund sells near-term contracts at a premium and purchases the less expensive later-month contracts to replace them, the rolling process in backwardation actually produces a return rather than a cost. Part of the reason USO’s recent returns appear so promising is this structural change. In addition to rising oil prices, the 91% one-year return and the 80% year-to-date gain are the result of a favorable futures curve that encourages holding near-term exposure in a market with limited supply.
Prior to the brief ceasefire announcement, which caused oil prices to plummet and the USO to retreat to $124, the 52-week high of $143.98 was reached just last week on April 7. The ceasefire was always precarious; in a matter of days, Iranian counterstatements, Israeli attacks on Lebanon, and disagreements over the reopening of Hormuz had all eroded trust in the agreement. The oil market had already begun to price in a re-escalation by the time Trump announced the blockade on Sunday, following the formal collapse of weekend peace negotiations in Islamabad. Because of the way these things operate, USO’s pre-market increase on Monday morning was the fund catching up to where crude futures were already trading. With the amplification that results from its comparatively high beta, the ETF follows the price of oil rather than setting it.
Observing USO at these levels gives the impression that the fund has turned into a daily vote on whether or not the conflict will end. The ceasefire week was painful for recent holders, and news of peace sends it plummeting. News of escalation causes it to rise dramatically. The majority of the days in between are dictated by the particular news cycle, diplomatic statements‘ tone, tanker traffic statistics, and whatever the most recent oil inventory report reveals. USO is a straightforward but useful tool for traders who have a clear understanding of the geopolitical landscape. The contango risk and event-driven volatility should be given more consideration by long-term investors constructing diversified portfolios than the recent return percentages alone might indicate. The number displayed on the screen is accurate. The circumstances that gave rise to it might not last forever.
