London-based Brent crude contracts were trading sharply higher on Tuesday after Iran vowed to retaliate against violations of its recent cease-fire agreement with Washington following new U.S. attacks on Tehran's military assets.
Brent futures were up around $4 Tuesday, partially recovering the previous day's $7 drop, after President Trump said over the weekend that a U.S.-Iran deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was "largely negotiated."
West Texas Intermediate crude contracts were down more than $2, however. The Brent-WTI divergence reflects the fact that WTI did not settle on Monday due to the U.S. Memorial Day holiday, and Brent's rapid reversal on Tuesday also underscored investor skepticism over the latest cease-fire.
At 12:05 p.m. ET, London-based ICE July Brent was around $3.95 higher to $100.05/bbl and August Brent was up $3.75 to $97.20/bbl.
NYMEX July WTI was $2.65 lower to $93.95/bbl and August WTI was down $2.45 to $90.65/bbl.
