Oil prices are heading for their biggest weekly gain since July, as the renewed escalation in U.S.-Iran tensions has heightened concerns about prolonged disruptions to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude is trading near $96 a barrel, up around 0.30%, bringing its weekly gain to more than 7%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was trading near $92 a barrel, up approximately 0.60%.
The latest escalation erupted after a period of relative calm, with U.S. strikes at the beginning of the week followed by Iranian retaliatory attacks against U.S. bases in the region.
Iranian forces continued to target vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, while also launching missiles toward Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Meanwhile, Israel left open the possibility of resuming military operations, warning that another Iranian attack would free it from existing restrictions, increasing the risk of a new cycle of military escalation.
Although the fighting intensified during the week, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance played down the scale of the conflict, saying he would not characterize it as a war because the major military operations had been completed weeks earlier.
The U.S. administration has maintained in recent days that the number of vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz has increased, a position Vance also reiterated.
“If you go back three months, how much oil and gas was coming out through the Strait of Hormuz amid Iranian threats? Almost none,” he said.
“Now, we’re almost back to the situation before the conflict,” he added.
For his part, Donald Trump told the British conservative television network GB News that the United States has “great control” over the Strait of Hormuz.
“We’re making sure that 30, 40 ships pass through every night,” the U.S. president claimed.
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that 17 million barrels of oil had passed through the waterway, while Trump posted a chart on Truth Social citing 18 million barrels per day, a figure close to pre-war levels of approximately 20 million barrels per day.
- Oil: Brent hits $96 again — Vance says shipments through Hormuz have been restored appeared first on - English.