WTI crude oil futures dropped about 4% to below $90 per barrel on Wednesday, hovering near a five-week low, as optimism grew that the US and Iran could reach a peace agreement despite continued hostilities. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that any potential deal could still take several days to finalize. At the same time, US forces carried out strikes on targets near the strait, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed it had fired on multiple US aircraft that allegedly entered Iranian airspace.
The strategic waterway—normally responsible for handling roughly 20% of global oil and LNG shipments—remains largely closed due to blockades imposed by both sides. Nonetheless, two non-Iranian supertankers successfully passed through the chokepoint on Tuesday, representing the first major movement of unrestricted crude in a week.
