WTI gains as Trump reinstated an Iranian blockade and imposed a 20% transit fee on other vessels securing the strait.
President Trump backed a sanctions bill to penalize international buyers of Russian oil and natural gas.
Supply anxieties worsened after two UAE oil tankers were struck by Iranian cruise missiles near Oman.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil price extends its gains for the second successive day, trading around $79.60 per barrel during the Asian hours on Tuesday. Crude oil prices rise due to mounting supply anxieties following a sharp escalation of geopolitical hostilities in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump has reinstated a naval blockade targeting Iranian vessels and customers transiting the Strait of Hormuz, while simultaneously announcing that all other commercial cargo passing through the strategic waterway will be subject to a 20% reimbursement fee. Trump asserted that the US must be financially compensated for its military efforts to secure the volatile chokepoint, pointing directly to regional nations that benefit from US protection, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait.
The aggressive maritime measures follow a fresh wave of tit-for-tat military exchanges between Washington and Tehran. While the US aims to neutralize Iran's capacity to disrupt international shipping, Tehran has retaliated by targeting American allies across the Gulf. In a separate move, President Trump stated he would support a Russian sanctions bill, originally championed by the late Senator Lindsey Graham, that aims to renew and intensify penalties against international buyers of Russian oil and natural gas.
Compounding the energy market crisis, the UAE Ministry of Defence confirmed early Tuesday that two of its national oil tankers, the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah, were struck by Iranian cruise missiles. According to Reuters reports, the targeted attack occurred in the southern shipping lane of the Strait of Hormuz within Omani territorial waters.
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