WTI Oil holds above $100.00 despite retreating from highs on hopes of peace with Iran

• Above $100, WTI oil holds within its recent trading range despite retreating from highs around $103.00.
• Hopes of renewed negotiations have strengthened as tentative signs emerge of easing tensions between the US and Iran.
• Further oil price declines are being limited by continuing attacks on vessels seeking passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

At $100.80 a barrel at the time of writing, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) remains above the key $100.00 mark, having retreated from Wednesday’s high near $103.00. Oil is edging down on Thursday after remarks from US and Iranian officials suggested efforts to ease tensions, though losses have so far been contained.

According to US media reports earlier on Thursday, Vice President JD Vance contacted Mohsen Rezaei, the Secretary of Iran’s National Security Council, in an effort to restart peace talks. President Donald Trump disputed that account, however, saying the contact concerned Iran’s need for medical supplies.

Tehran is maintaining close contact with mediators over implementing their seven-day roadmap to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said. Although there is no firm evidence of progress towards a peace agreement, the softer rhetoric has encouraged cautious optimism that the two sides could resume negotiations. 

Further losses in oil prices are nevertheless being restrained by continued attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. A vessel was reported to be on fire 9 nautical miles north of Khasab, in Oman, according to the UK Maritime Trade Organisation (UKMTO). Iranian officials, meanwhile, maintained that the waterway would stay closed to traffic until their seven-day plan was accepted.

A 1.46 million-barrel fall in crude oil stocks in the week of 23 October was reported by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday. The decline far exceeded market analysts’ forecast of a 300K drop and followed a drawdown of 3.06 million barrels the previous week. By providing further evidence that oil inventories are being depleted rapidly, the figures are helping prices hold at elevated levels.