Brent crude oil hovered around $80 per barrel on Friday and was on track for a weekly loss of about 8%, after Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire scheduled to begin that day. If the truce holds, it could remove a key obstacle to broader peace efforts between the US and Iran.
At the same time, Tehran announced that vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz would be required to carry mandatory insurance policies. Passage is currently free of such charges, but costs could be imposed later, underscoring Iran’s assertion of control over the strategic chokepoint.
Market data indicated that shipping activity had slowed following an earlier surge in tanker movements. No outbound tankers were observed leaving the Persian Gulf on Friday morning. By contrast, nearly 10 million barrels of crude were seen transiting or positioned near the strait on Thursday, including the first Saudi-owned tankers to move since the conflict began more than three months ago. Uncertainty persists after planned US-Iran talks in Switzerland were canceled.
