Oil prices sank further on Wednesday, with the international benchmark Brent trading below $80 per barrel for the first time since early March, as optimism continued to drive prices lower following a framework peace deal between the US and Iran that is expected to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by the end of the week.
The possibility of renewed traffic through the strait has helped ease fears of prolonged disruptions to energy supplies from the Gulf, a key source of global oil and liquefied natural gas exports.
This could mark an end to what the International Energy Agency (IEA) called the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.
Oil stocks in OECD countries fall to lowest level since 1990: IEA
The interim peace deal between the US and Iran comes at a time when strategic oil reserves in advanced economies have fallen to their lowest level since 1990, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday. Governments have continued to tap emergency stockpiles to offset disruptions caused by the Gulf conflict.
