A convoy of eight tankers was crossing the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, data showed, as some ship owners said they hoped Tehran would allow them to leave the Gulf during a short ceasefire window in the Iran war. The group - comprising one very large crude oil carrier (VLCC), several oil product and chemical tankers and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers - was passing through Iranian waters south of Larak island, according to MarineTraffic data. More tankers were seen following from the [Read more]

Goldman Sachs said softer oil demand and easing supply disruptions have balanced out the risks in its oil price outlook, though it kept its 2026 average forecasts unchanged. The bank maintained its Brent and WTI crude forecasts for 2026 at $83 a barrel and $78 a barrel, respectively, assuming oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway through which about 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass, gradually normalize by mid-May. * Crude prices settled down [Read more]

The U.S. Department of Energy said on Friday it had loaned26.03 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to nine oil companies, the third allotment under the Trump administration's effort to curb fuel prices that have surged since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The Trump administration agreed in March to release 172 million barrels from the SPR in a coordinated move with the International Energy Agency to draw down 400 million barrels in an effort to control fuel prices [Read more]

U.S. energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for a second straight week for the first time since March, energy services firm Baker Hughes said in its closely followed report on Friday. The oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, fell by two to 543 in the week to April 17, the lowest since late March. Baker Hughes said this week's decline puts the total rig count down 42 rigs, or 7% below this time last year. Baker Hughes said oil [Read more]

Investors placed a bet worth about $760 million on a falling oil price around 20 minutes before Iran's foreign minister announced on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz was open, another sizeable wager on the world's most traded commodity ahead of major announcements in the course of the Middle East war. Large, well-timed trades in recent months have drawn concern from U.S. lawmakers and legal experts that decisions around war and diplomacy can give some traders an edge in volatile and opaque [Read more]

Iran's foreign minister said the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for transporting global oil and gas, was open for all commercial vessels following a ceasefire accord agreed in Lebanon. Here are some quotes from the shipping industry and world leaders on the Iranian declaration. SHIPPING INDUSTRY: KNUT ARILD HAREIDE, CEO OF THE NORWEGIAN SHIPOWNERS' ASSOCIATION "If this represents a step towards an opening, it is a welcome development. However, the situation remains unresolved, [Read more]

Oil prices fell in early trade on Friday on optimism the Middle East conflict could be nearing an end after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel took effect and President Donald Trump said the U.S. and Iran may meet for talks on the weekend. Brent crude futures declined by 61 cents, or 0.61%, to $98.78 a barrel at 0707 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 89 cents, or 0.94%, to $93.8 a barrel, trimming gains from the previous session. Addressing a key sticking [Read more]

The discount on Western Canada Select crude oil to North American benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures widened on Thursday. WCS for May delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $17 a barrel, below the U.S. benchmark WTI, according to brokerage CalRock, compared to $16.60 on Wednesday. * That marks the steepest differential for heavy Canadian crude since the start of the U.S. war on Iran. * The WCS differential has been volatile since the start of conflict and the effective closure [Read more]