Oil Prices Fall As Strait Shipments Resume Despite Vessel Attack Near Oman

Oil prices edged lower on Friday and were on course for steep weekly losses as concerns over supply disruptions eased.

With tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz showing signs of recovery despite a fresh security incident near Oman. Brent crude futures slipped 19 cents, or 0.25%, to $75.07 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 13 cents, or 0.18%, to $71.79 a barrel.

The decline came a day after both benchmarks had surged more than 2% following an attack on a cargo vessel near Oman, prompting the United Nations’ shipping agency to suspend its voluntary evacuation programme in the area.

According to Reuters, two US officials said Iran fired on the cargo ship as it attempted to transit the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian authorities, meanwhile, said they could not guarantee the safety of vessels operating outside designated shipping lanes.

Despite the incident, markets drew support from improving shipping activity. Data released on Thursday showed crude tanker movements through the Strait of Hormuz climbed to their highest level since the US-Israel-Iran conflict erupted in February, following a ceasefire that allowed maritime traffic to resume.

Still, vessel movements remain well below the pre-conflict daily average of around 125 ships, indicating that normal operations have yet to fully return.

“With geopolitical risks back in focus, markets will be closely watching whether tanker traffic continues to recover or whether fresh disruptions prompt producers to reconsider planned output increases,” IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.

Both Brent and WTI are on track to post weekly losses of nearly 7%, reflecting easing fears over prolonged supply disruptions after the ceasefire.

Separately, traders also monitored developments in Venezuela after powerful earthquakes struck the country on Thursday. Initial assessments indicated limited damage to the nation’s key oil infrastructure, as major production fields, refineries, pipelines and export terminals are located away from the worst-affected areas.

However, a widespread power outage has raised concerns over whether Venezuela can maintain crude production at its current level of roughly 1.2 million barrels per day, according to industry sources.