Oil Prices Plummet on Iran's Strait of Hormuz Declaration

Oil prices plummeted by over 10% on Friday, with Brent crude futures dropping to $88.27 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures falling to $83.29 a barrel.

The decline follows comments from Iran's foreign minister stating that the Strait of Hormuz is open for commercial vessels during the remaining ceasefire period.

UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo noted that while the comments indicate a de-escalation, it remains to be seen if tanker traffic through the Strait will increase substantially.