Oil prices shed nearly 4% on Tuesday after U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC the flow of tankers through the Strait of Hormuz is “rising very meaningfully”, the first senior U.S. official to publicly signal an easing of what analysts have called the biggest oil supply disruption in history.
WTI crude fell as much as 3.93% to $87.71 per barrel by mid-morning. Brent, the international benchmark, dropped 3.41% to $91.04. Both contracts had briefly spiked Monday after Iran and Israel exchanged missile and air strikes before reversing hard on Wright’s comments.
Wright made the remarks in an interview with CNBC’s Brian Sullivan at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, however hard numbers were not included with the commentary. President Donald Trump said Monday a deal with Tehran to formally reopen the strait was “two or three days away,” a claim he has made repeatedly without an agreement materializing.
The Strait of Hormuz has been largely closed to commercial shipping since Iran retaliated for a U.S. and Israeli strike on Feb. 28, attacking tankers and mining the sea lane. Oil prices have surged roughly 30% since that attack.
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