Oil Prices Rebound to $75 After Hormuz Incident

At 16:45 ET (20:45 GMT) on Thursday, Brent crude futures for September delivery increased 1.7% to $75.14 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures for August delivery rose 1.7% to $71.53 a barrel. Both benchmarks had closed on Wednesday at their lowest levels since 27 February, the day before the U.S.–Israeli joint assault on Iran, effectively stripping the market of a geopolitical risk premium that had previously pushed Brent toward $120 per barrel.

Ship Attack in the Strait of Hormuz

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported an attack on a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz near Oman. An unknown projectile damaged the vessel’s bridge but caused no casualties. The Wall Street Journal later identified the ship as a Singapore‑flagged cargo vessel and attributed the attack to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The vessel was navigating close to the Omani coast when struck, shortly after Iran’s paramilitary navy warned commercial ships against using unauthorized routes.

In response, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), the Iranian body that regulates traffic through the strait, warned that any passage outside its designated routes would forfeit safe‑passage guarantees, insurance coverage, and related liabilities, placing responsibility on the owner, operator, and vessel commander.

The incident occurred against the backdrop of a diplomatic breakthrough: President Donald Trump had signed an interim peace deal with Iran the previous week, ending hostilities on all fronts and reopening the strait. Tanker traffic appears to be improving, with Kpler data showing confirmed crossings doubling to 70 on Wednesday from the prior day.

U.S. Diplomatic Stance on Hormuz Tolls

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio concluded a tour of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, during which the White House and the GCC issued a joint statement welcoming the June 17 memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the United States and Iran and acknowledging the mediation roles of Pakistan and Qatar. The statement emphasized that “free, unconditional, and unrestricted navigation, including the right of transit passage as guaranteed under international law, remains essential to regional and global security.”

The ministers also rejected any tolls, fees, or attempts to assert control over the Strait, and welcomed Oman’s and the International Maritime Organization’s plan to evacuate more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the region. Rubio reiterated the U.S. position, describing any Iranian demand for tolls as “a game of semantics,” and stressed that the United States would focus on whether ships are moving rather than on press conferences.

Market Outlook

JPMorgan analysts, led by Bruce Kasman, projected that Brent crude oil prices would average $80 per barrel in the second half of 2026, reflecting the removal of the earlier geopolitical risk premium.