Oil Eases as US Concludes Iran Strikes

Crude oil pulled back toward $91 per barrel on Thursday, paring gains from earlier in the session after the US military announced it had completed its latest strikes on Iran, raising hopes that peace negotiations could resume. The US earlier launched fresh attacks on Iran after President Donald Trump accused Tehran of delaying talks over an interim peace agreement. Iran also reportedly responded by targeting US vessels in the Strait of Hormuz with missile and drone attacks. The latest escalation reinforced the view that the April ceasefire has effectively unraveled, even though the large-scale bombing campaign seen at the outset of the conflict has not resumed. The near-total closure of the Strait of Hormuz continued to tighten global energy supplies, though there were signs that limited volumes of oil were still moving out of the Persian Gulf. Meanwhile, EIA data showed US crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels last week, extending their decline to a seventh straight week.