Oil benchmarks rebounded Tuesday, regaining lost ground as diplomatic friction between Washington and Tehran raised fresh concerns over persistent Middle East supply risks.
Brent crude futures rose $1.12, or 1.3%, to $84.89 per barrel, following a steep 7% plunge to a three-week low in the previous session, according to market data.
Simultaneously, U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude advanced 77 cents, or 1%, to $81.11 per barrel, stabilizing after dropping more than 5% to its lowest level in nearly a week.
The previous session’s selloff was triggered by comments from U.S. President Donald Trump indicating a temporary pause on military strikes against Iran to facilitate ongoing negotiations.
However, market optimism proved short-lived after Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei denied that any direct talks or scheduled meetings were taking place with Washington.
The conflict continues to disrupt maritime transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical bottleneck that handled roughly 20% of global daily crude consumption prior to the war.
Washington asserts that a June memorandum requires Tehran to fully reopen the channel, while Iranian officials maintain the accord preserves their domestic sovereign authority over the waterway.
Despite ongoing transit risks, recent tracking data indicates that combined crude and product exports passing through the strategic strait briefly rose to 4.2 million barrels per day.
That figure marks a notable increase from the 3.2 million barrels per day recorded during the previous week, though major shipping operators still face heightened security risks.
