Brent and WTI crude gained more than 1% on Thursday after Iran and Oman agreed on coordinates for a temporary shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz. The deal stops short of fully reopening the chokepoint, and an unexpected build in U.S. crude inventories curbed the rally.
Brent crude futures climbed 1.8% to $80.87 a barrel at 09:29 ET Thursday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.3% to $76.19 a barrel. Both contracts remain down more than 8% over the past week, even as Iran and Oman moved closer to restoring shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran and Oman Agree on Corridor Coordinates
Iran announced an agreement with Oman on the coordinates for a shipping route through the strait, a waterway that handled roughly a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows before the Iran war began in late February. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei confirmed on August 5 that the two countries had concluded an understanding on the route's coordinates, with a joint statement in its final stages of drafting. He said the statement holds only if "certain third parties do not obstruct the process," a reference to ongoing U.S. naval operations in the region.
Split Responsibility, Not a Full Reopening
Under the proposed arrangement, Tehran would control inbound shipping entering the Gulf while Oman handles outbound clearance, giving Iran a formal role in traffic management through the chokepoint. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi separately said the two sides had reached understanding on nearly all outstanding points. The talks ran two months and built on the June 2026 Islamabad memorandum between the U.S. and Iran.
Analysts See U.S.-Iran Talks as the Real Catalyst
The corridor deal alone does not amount to a full reopening of the strait, with negotiations over cargo fees, inspections and security arrangements still unresolved. U.S. President Donald Trump said at a rally in Las Vegas on Wednesday that Washington was holding talks with Tehran, though Iran has publicly denied that peace talks are underway. ING analysts said in a note that progress in U.S.-Iran talks, not the corridor deal alone, is what would let disrupted energy flows resume.
Inventory Build Tempers the Rally
An unexpected supply signal also worked against the rally: U.S. crude oil inventories rose by about 2.5 million barrels last week, compared with market expectations for a 1.5-million-barrel drawdown, pointing to softer near-term demand. Refined fuel markets tightened regardless: gasoline stockpiles fell 1.64 million barrels. Distillate stockpiles dropped 3.47 million barrels over the week.
Beyond the current standoff, the strait carries roughly 20% of global seaborne oil trade, about 20 million barrels a day from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq and Qatar. It has remained heavily restricted since Iran imposed transit controls following joint U.S.-Israeli strikes in late February 2026. Lower crude prices also ease inflation pressure and bolster the case for Federal Reserve rate cuts, CoinGape noted — a pattern that has held through 2026.
Sources: Commodities & Futures News, CoinGape
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