Crude contracts fell slightly around midday Wednesday, as Iran and U.S. continued to pursue a peace agreement to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with Persian Gulf oil flows through the key global oil supply chokepoint showing signs of recovery.
At 12:10 p.m. ET, August NYMEX West Texas Intermediate crude contracts were down around $1.25 to $68.30/bbl, and September WTI was about $1.10 lower to $68.20/bbl.
London-based September ICE Brent crude futures were down about $1.60 to $71.35/bbl and October Brent was $1.25 lower to $71.75/bbl.
On Tuesday, oil prices closed out the second quarter with their biggest quarterly loss since early 2020, after a sharp price surge earlier this year due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, the price differential between WTI and Brent fell to nearly $3/bbl on Wednesday, a sharp contrast to almost $15/bbl in mid-March, reflecting the significant drop in risk premium in Brent barrels due to the Middle East conflicts.
