Crude oil futures continue to search the upside with the October contract currently trading just short of $102 at $101.92. That's up 6.07%. Brent crude oil is also sharply higher by $6.03 or 5.96% at $107.23.The gain today is the largest since August 10. It is a large gain since August 10.The fundamental storyline behind the surge in crude oil remains centered on growing supply concerns from the Middle East. It got an added boost with a report from the WSJ that Iran is reportedly producing ballistic missiles again. Attacks on oil tankers have increased, while the Iran-backed Houthis have seized Yemen’s port of Mocha, putting them closer to the strategically important Bab el-Mandeb shipping route. Combined with continued threats surrounding the Strait of Hormuz and no permanent ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, the market is adding a larger geopolitical risk premium to crude prices. A drone attack that disrupted operations at Russia’s Ryazan refinery has added another layer of supply uncertainty. In short, the market is worried that the conflict is spreading across more energy facilities and shipping routes, and until those risks ease, buyers may remain willing to support oil on dips. Technically, the price of WTI crude oil has continued its run to the upside, extending above the key swing-high area between $96.68 and $97.00. That break opened the door for a move toward the 61.8% retracement at $99.59. Buyers pushed through that target as well, strengthening the bullish technical bias.The price is now trading above $101, with the next major resistance not coming in until the $105.76 area. That does not mean the price has to move directly to that target, but there is not a lot of meaningful resistance between the current level and that area.Helping the bullish case is the price action following the breakout. The most recent corrective low found support against the broken topside trendline before buyers stepped back in. When a broken resistance line holds as support, it shows that buyers remain willing to enter on dips rather than wait for a deeper correction.Going forward, the $99.59 retracement and the former swing-high area between $96.68 and $97.00 are now the key support levels. Staying above those levels keeps the buyers more firmly in control and the door open toward $105.76. A move back below them would weaken the breakout and raise the possibility that buyers stretched too far.The lesson for traders is that once resistance is broken, it often becomes support. Holding above the old ceiling confirms that the market is accepting the higher price. Falling back below it would suggest that the breakout is failing. This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.