Oil rises again after Iran announces closure of the Strait of Hormuz

At 9 pm, the commodity was quoted at US$78.50, an increase of 3.28%. Prices were directly affected by the return of clashes between the United States and Iran and the consequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz, announced by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on Saturday (11).

United States President Donald Trump, however, declared on social media that the strait, one of the main oil flow routes in the region, "is open", even though traffic in the region plummeted after Tehran struck two oil tankers.

The price of Brent has been falling since last month, when the two countries signed terms of a ceasefire. In June, contracts were traded at around US$100, while on Friday (10) the commodity was quoted at US$76.01.

Last week, with the return of instability in the Middle East, Brent prices rose 5.39% after a sequence of four weeks of decline.

WTI (West Texas Intermediate) contracts for August, used in the United States, rose 3.93% in the week and ended Friday's trading at US$71.41. The weekly increase was also the biggest since the week of May 10th, when WTI rose more than 10%.

US and Iranian forces exchanged missile and drone attacks throughout Sunday. Tehran attacked American installations in Gulf countries such as Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan and again stated that the strait was closed.

The attacks also hit Qatar, an important mediator in the conflict in negotiations for a ceasefire - the country had been immune to attacks since April. The United Arab Emirates, which also had not been hit since May, said it had intercepted missiles and drones coming from Iran.

Iranian media reported US strikes around the port of Bandar Abbas, where military facilities are located in the strait, and on the island of Qeshm.

The ceasefire, announced as a great victory for Donald Trump less than a month ago, lost its validity last week, when the North American president said he considered the provisional agreement to be closed.

When the initial terms to end the attacks were signed between Iran and the US, there were plans to reopen the strait and put an end to the war. This time, however, Trump once again left open a new round of negotiations to end the conflicts, which began on February 28.

This Saturday, Iran issued warnings that ships circulating in the Hormuz region should not sail without its authorization. During the night, the local authority fired a warning shot at a vessel sailing on an unauthorized route. That Sunday, a second vessel would have been immobilized.

The Iranian-controlled Persian Gulf Straits Authority said on Sunday that the passage was blocked due to what it called "recent illegal movements by US military forces in the region." It said permits will resume once "stability and calm are re-established."

Iran's Foreign Ministry said that negotiations in Muscat, held on Saturday, focused on the management of the Strait of Hormuz, but the US, which had pressured Oman, prevented a result from being reached on the matter.

Iran's main negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, published on his X profile this Sunday that "the era of unilateral agreements is over. We warn you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking on the door."