Brent Crude Price Decline and Hormuz Shipping Recovery
At 15:37 ET (19:37 GMT) on 24 June 2026, Brent crude futures for September slipped 4.3% to $73.50 a barrel, after touching a session low of $73.33, the lowest level since 27 February, the day before the United States and Israel launched a joint assault on Iran. In the same session, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for August fell 4.4% to $70.02 a barrel, hitting a session low of $69.65 and moving below the $70 mark for the first time since 2 March.
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced that 72 ships carrying roughly 20 million barrels of oil transited the Strait of Hormuz in the preceding 24 hours, fully restoring pre‑conflict flow levels. Kpler data recorded 31 verified ship crossings on Tuesday, with west‑to‑east movements dominating while Iranian, Omani and IMO routes remained in use. The Strait appeared operational under the recent U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU), though dark‑route activity and uncertainty beyond the 60‑day MoU window keep the recovery cautious.
Media reports indicated that several previously stranded supertankers have successfully exited the Gulf with crude cargoes, and a growing number of Qatar‑linked liquefied natural gas vessels have resumed voyages through the waterway. Earlier in the week, productive peace talks in Switzerland led Washington to grant Iran a temporary sanctions waiver, allowing certain oil exports to continue through August, which has raised expectations of additional crude supplies returning to global markets.
Analysts at ING estimated that roughly 6‑7 million barrels per day moved through the Strait in recent days, still far below pre‑war flows of around 20 million b/d. They noted that a flow of about 14 million b/d would be sufficient for Persian Gulf oil supply to return to pre‑war levels. ING added that the oil sell‑off appears overdone and the market expects a fairly rapid recovery in Persian Gulf oil supplies.
President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that, contrary to some reports, Iran had confirmed there were “no tolls,” “no insurance costs,” and “no other charges of any kind” levied on ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Crude Inventory Drawdown
Energy Information Administration (EIA) data for the week ending 19 June showed total U.S. crude inventories, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), fell by 15.2 million barrels to 743.3 million barrels, the lowest level since October 1984. Inventories excluding the SPR declined by 6.1 million barrels, far exceeding the expected draw of 3.9 million barrels, leaving 412.1 million barrels, the lowest since January 2025. Storage at the Cushing hub in Oklahoma dropped by 1 million barrel to 19 million barrels, the lowest level since October 2014. The United States has been rapidly depleting its ample oil reserves to keep domestic prices low and to provide an alternative supply source amid the disruption of Hormuz shipping.