Oil settles up nearly $2 after Trump threatens to hit Iran 'very hard.'

NEW YORK, June 11 ------ Oil prices closed up nearly $2 after President Donald Trump said the U.S. is going to attack Iran "very hard" ‌if no peace deal is finalized. Brent crude futures settled at $93.10 a barrel, up $1.65 or 1.8%. U.S. crude futures finished at $90.03 a barrel, up $1.83, or 2%. Both contracts jumped about $3 in afternoon trading after Trump reiterated that Iran would be attacked again following an exchange of fire overnight that was one of the most significant since an April ceasefire.

Prices ​pared gains toward the session’s close after Trump said the U.S. military secretly escorted ships carrying more than 100 million barrels of oil out of ​the Strait of Hormuz.

Global oil consumption is roughly 100 million barrels per day. Trump suggested the operation had helped keep ⁠prices in check, telling reporters at the White House that crude would otherwise be “at $250” instead of "$85–$90 a barrel". His remarks followed a Truth Social post in ​which he said Tehran would have to "pay the price" for allegedly dragging out negotiations for a peace deal. "Oil prices have shifted from anxiety to apathy and ​back again amid renewed skirmishes between the U.S. and Iran," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at the Price Futures Group.

Prices were also supported by data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, which showed U.S. crude stocks fell sharply last week as refiners scrambled to fill supply gaps caused by the war. U.S. crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels in the week ended June ​5, the agency said, a far bigger draw than the 4 million barrels expected by analysts in a Reuters poll. The data showed inventories in the U.S. Strategic ​Petroleum Reserve at their lowest levels since August 2023. Separately on Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Energy said it is seeking to loan energy companies up to 40 million barrels of ‌crude oil ⁠from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help push fuel prices down.

Source: reuters.com