Crude oil slipped below $84 per barrel on Thursday, trimming gains from the previous session despite a new round of US air strikes on Iran in retaliation for attacks on American forces across the Middle East, stoking worries about further disruptions to global energy supplies. Efforts to reach a potential agreement between Washington and Tehran remained stalled, as Iran insisted on retaining control over the Strait of Hormuz.
The conflict has now spilled beyond Hormuz into the Red Sea, where Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have threatened to blockade Saudi Arabia. That escalation prompted Riyadh to join US forces in launching strikes on targets in Iraq linked to Tehran-backed militants.
In the US, commercial crude inventories recorded their largest draw since mid-June, underscoring signs of a tightening physical market. The country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve also fell for an 18th consecutive week, hitting its lowest level since 1983.
