A drone view of oil storage containers and services of the TotalEnergies refinery within the Leuna Chemical Complex, in Leuna, Germany, March 17, 2026.
Annegret Hilse | Reuters
Oil costs prolonged beneficial properties after U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on his threats to assault Iran’s civil infrastructure, warning that the nation can be “taken out in one night” if the Islamic Republic’s management didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for May broadened beneficial properties to commerce over 2% increased at $112.41 per barrel as of 11:08 p.m. ET. Brent crude for June supply rose about 1.3% to $109.77 per barrel.
Brent crude costs
On Monday, Trump repeated his risk that the U.S. would destroy Iran’s power crops and bridges if Tehran didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, whereas additionally signaling that Iranian management was negotiating in earnest.
The closure of the slim waterway connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman has led to a provide shock, sending costs for crude, jet gas, diesel, and gasoline hovering because the battle broke out on Feb. 28.
“They have ’til tomorrow,” the president said. “Now we’ll see what happens. I can tell you, they are negotiating, we think in good faith, we’re going to find out. We’re getting the help of some incredible countries that want this to be ended, because it affects them also.”
Reuters reported that the U.S. and Iran had been discussing a framework plan to finish their 5-week-old battle, as Tehran has pushed again in opposition to Trump’s stress to swiftly reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which might enable visitors to renew via the vital energy artery.
Iran has rejected the U.S. ceasefire proposal, presenting its personal 10-point plan, in accordance with Axios, together with a everlasting finish to hostilities within the area, slightly than a short lived ceasefire, a protocol for protected passage via the Strait of Hormuz, lifting of sanctions, and reconstruction.
But the possibilities of a ceasefire deal being reached earlier than the deadline remained slim, in accordance with the report.
Trump responded to the proposal, saying that “They made a … significant proposal. Not good enough, but they have made a very significant step. We will see what happens.”
Traffic trickling via
The consequence of the peace talks stays murky, stated Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Research, keeping investors on tenterhooks and caught between pricing in an imminent finish to the battle or additional escalation.
“There is no way to predict the outcome. We can’t rule out that Iran will cave in. Or, Trump may postpone the deadline again, explaining that negotiations are making progress. Or the war will escalate,” Yardeni stated. “The fog of war remains thick.”
Shipping via the Strait of Hormuz has slowly resumed, with 8 tankers transiting Monday, up from the typical of fewer than 2 transits per day in March, in accordance with S&P Global Market Intelligence. That, nonetheless, is a fraction of pre-war ranges, with a mean of 20 million barrels of crude oil and merchandise transiting the strait per day in 2025.
“It is an improvement at the margin in terms of flows from [the Strait of Hormuz],” stated Michael Wan, senior forex analyst at MUFG Research, noting that the trail in direction of peace stays “narrow and unlikely” given the huge hole in expectations amongst totally different events within the battle.
A full resumption of visitors via the strait would nonetheless take a while for the precise provide to movement via to Asian economies dealing with imminent power scarcity, stated Wan, who expects a timeline of “at least 3 to 6 months.”
