Oil Prices Retreat as Trump Hints at Brief Iran Campaign
Oil prices retreated on Thursday after a three-day rally as US President Donald Trump hinted that the recent attacks on Iran may be short-lived. This news tempered concerns over supply disruptions from the Middle East, where tensions have been escalating since July.
Trump said that the renewed campaign against Iran would not persist for an extended period, helping to ease some of the market's immediate worries. The Strait of Hormuz remains a key focus for oil markets, with 17 million barrels of crude passing through the waterway on Monday - the highest volume since the conflict sharply reduced flows.
Despite this, shipping traffic in the region remains volatile, with only four commodity vessels transiting the strait on Tuesday compared to an average of 13. The market also received a bullish signal from US inventories, which fell by 4.5 million barrels last week - the first decline in five weeks.