WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Extending the losses from Thursday's session, crude oil prices have declined sharply on Friday as efforts by third-party mediators to bring the U.S. and Iran back to the negotiating table intensify while the Middle East remained free from any new U.S. versus Iran attacks for the past 24 hours.
WTI Crude Oil for August month delivery was last seen trading down by $0.75 (or 1.04%) at $71.33 per barrel.
Despite signing a Memorandum of Understanding to halt mutual attacks for 60 days, the U.S. and Iran engaged in an exchange of fire on July 7 and 8 following three separate incidents of projectile hits on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. President Donald Trump allowed negotiations to continue and added that Iran was desperately in need of a deal with the U.S. However, he expressed doubts if Iran could keep up an agreement.
Though the trajectory of peace talks still remains unclear, no new attacks happened in the past 24 hours.
The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Agency stated that security threat in the Strait of Hormuz is at its highest level, read as 'severe'.
In an advisory issued to seafarers today, the UKMTO warned them to be vigilant and travel via the southern route of the strait.
Citing Kpler's data, Reuters reported that LNG and oil tanker traffic dropped to 10 ships on Thursday, its lowest level since June 28. The report stated that 14 ships transited on Wednesday against 22 on Monday.
Reuters reported that a Qatari delegation is in Iran today to boost mediation, de-escalate tension and create favorable conditions for broader U.S.-Iran negotiations. The talks are conducted in coordination with the U.S.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated that Iran asked for continuing the talks and the U.S. has agreed but he also added that the U.S. conveyed to Iran that the ceasefire is over
Today, in its Oil Market Report for 2026, the Paris-based International Energy Agency stated that due to improving supply conditions and lower prices, global oil consumption is gradually increasing after hitting a low point in the month of May.
However, the report forecasted weaker-than-expected demand growth amid the ongoing Middle East conflict involving the U.S. and Iran as well as Israel and Lebanon.
The energy watchdog predicted an annual increase of up to 1 million barrels per day, an improvement from the previous projection of a 1.1 million barrel-per-day decline.
The agency noted that global oil supply rose by 4.1 million bpd in June to 98.8 million bpd but remained around 9.4 million bpd below pre-war levels.
The IEA predicted the global oil supply would decline by an average of 3.7 million bpd in 2026.
After July 7-8 U.S.-Iran mutual attacks, despite an unexpected build in the U.S. crude inventories and last Sunday's decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to increase their output, oil supply-related concerns directed the prices.
On Sunday, OPEC+ announced that its seven member countries would raise production by 188,000 million bpd from August. This is the fifth consecutive increase announced by the OPEC+ alliance.
The seven core members of the alliance have increased their output from April through July by nearly 800 million bpd. However, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz for tanker traffic crippled supplies for the group's important members, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq.
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