Oil extend early losses as investors remain glued to tanker traffic developments
Commercial ships and oil tankers preparing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most critical strategic waterways in terms of global trade flow, have been waiting in the Gulf of Oman since June 17.
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Oil extended losses during Asian trading hours on Wednesday as concerns about potential supply disruptions eased and investors monitored developments in the Strait of Hormuz.
International comparison Brent crude oil August futures contracts fell 0.91% to $76.38 per barrel. WE West Texas Intermediate Futures It decreased by 0.94% to $72.52 per barrel in August.
US President Donald Trump criticized oil companies on Wednesday for not lowering gasoline prices in line with the recent decline in crude oil prices.
Trump wrote on Truth Social: “Big Oil Companies are not reducing pump prices in proportion to the much lower prices they pay for Oil. These prices are falling like a rock!” to mail.
“In other words, customers are being ‘gouged.’ I’ve directed the Department of Justice to begin looking into this matter immediately. Gas prices better start falling much faster than I’m seeing!” he added.
Karen Young, a senior research fellow at Columbia University’s Center for Global Energy Policy, called the post “political theater” and noted that “that’s not how gas prices actually work in the U.S.”
“There are state and local taxes imposed on gas prices at stations across the United States,” Young told CNBC’s “Access Middle East.”
“It really depends on the refineries and it takes a few weeks for crude oil prices to come down, then prices at the refineries and then finally being able to really respond to consumers.”
Investors were also encouraged by signs that maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz may begin to return to normal.
More than 11,000 sailors stranded in the Persian Gulf will begin to leave the Strait of Hormuz after receiving safety guarantees. International Maritime Organization.
“We have secured the necessary safety guarantees and extensively verified the conditions for safe navigation to support these operations,” IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement. he said.
Dominguez added that the project will be carried out “in close cooperation with Iran, Oman, all other coastal countries in the region, the United States and the maritime industry.”
Aditi Rasquinha, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Greater China, said in a statement on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box Asia’ program that supply chain pressures have increased due to the extended transit times of ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz and disruptions in air transportation capacity.
“With the opening of the strait, potentially a lot of this will ease,” Rasquinha said, but noted that it would take some time for the supply chain to normalize.
— CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed to the report.
