Oil Prices Refuse to Budge Amid Iran Blockade Threats
Oil prices remain below $88 per barrel despite US threats of an indefinite blockade on Iran. Brent crude stood near $87.08 after settling at $87.07 on Thursday, snapping a six-session winning streak.
The benchmark had briefly touched $90 earlier in the week as hopes for a quick resolution to the Strait of Hormuz standoff faded. However, weaker demand forecasts and a US inventory build are giving traders reasons to resist chasing crude higher without another physical disruption.
Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com, described the backdrop as a state of “no peace and no war” in comments reported by The Wall Street Journal. He said escalation risk should keep a geopolitical premium embedded in crude, even as weaker demand forecasts and rising US inventories limit gains.
The US commercial crude inventories jumped 17.4 million barrels to 424.4 million in the week ended August 7, according to the Energy Information Administration. Analysts had expected stocks to decline.