Hormuz blockade oil remained the main market driver into the new week, with Iran saying it will keep the Strait of Hormuz shut and tanker traffic still stalled.
Brent was on track for a 6.0% weekly gain, while WTI was up 5.4%. Traders priced in a longer disruption to Hormuz transit rather than a near-term fix. As a result, crude held a firm bid into the weekend.
Iran said on Saturday that the blockade would stay in place until the United States accepted defeat. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the strait would open and close only on Iran’s terms. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Iran had not decided whether to restart talks with the United States.
Hormuz Blockade Oil Drives Market Focus
There was no sign over the weekend of peace talks or an end to the fighting that the United States and Israel launched on February 28. Therefore, the market treated the blockade as an active supply shock, not just a headline risk.
Only two vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, according to ship tracking firm Kpler. Neither ship carried crude. Before the war, more than 130 ships crossed the strait each day on average.
The source article also said no crude tankers moved oil on Friday. That sharp drop in traffic kept support under prices as the new week approached.
Attacks and Trump Comments Add Pressure
Attacks on vessels also kept war-risk costs high. The UAE accused Iran of striking a third ADNOC tanker in the strait on Friday, after two earlier incidents the prior evening. Additionally, a bulk carrier was reported hit by an unidentified projectile.
Trump told Americans at a political rally in New York on Friday to accept paying “a tiny little bit more” for gasoline. He said that was the price of preventing Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. He also suggested the United States could later declare the strait U.S. territory once the conflict ends.
The average U.S. gasoline price stood at about $4.08 a gallon on Friday, according to the American Automobile Association. That was up 29% from a year earlier. Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on state television that a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and sanctions on oil exports had pushed up domestic inflation.
Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen also fired ballistic missiles at the Red Sea port of Mocha on Friday, killing four civilians.
You can access our other news on natural gas markets and global market developments here.
Source: InvestingLive
