oil prices News Updates

President Donald Trump told Axios he will not lift a naval blockade of Iran’s ports until he secures a deal with Tehran to address the country’s nuclear program.

Brent for delivery in July, which is where more of the trading is happening in the oil market, rose 5.3% to $109.92.

Tehran could be using retired ships to keep loading oil. The U.S. blockade means tankers carrying Iranian oil remain stuck in the Persian Gulf or the Gulf of Oman. 

U.S. crude exports surged to a record above 6 million barrels a day as the Iran war sends overseas buyers hunting for replacements to Middle Eastern oil.

A Japan-linked oil tanker completed a rare transit of the Strait of Hormuz, as the effective closure of the waterway enters its third month.

The extended closure of the Strait of Hormuz and extreme weather have jolted farm commodities prices to a two-year high.

There were three confirmed hijackings in the past week alone, with pirates boarding two cargo vessels and a tanker, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations.

The oil and LNG shortages caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz are likely to drag on for months and possibly into next year, Shell CEO Wael Sawan said.

Brent crude to be delivered in July, which is where more of the trading is happening in the oil market, rose 2.7% to $104.40 on April 28.

The move has been rumored for some time as the UAE chafed under production restrictions and increasingly had frostier relations with neighboring Saudi Arabia.