Oil prices dropped after a volatile trading session on Tuesday as Iran and Israel officially declared to have halted the attacks, easing tensions over disruption on energy supply.
At around 8 am IST, WTI crude was trading at $90.78 a barrel, down 52 cents or 0.57%, while Brent crude fell 48 cents, or 0.51%, to $93.77 a barrel.
The decline followed a sharp rise in oil prices a day earlier, when crude had surged more than 5% amid renewed tensions in the Middle East. Brent has gained around 31% since the conflict began more than 100 days ago, while WTI has risen about 37%. Earlier in April, Brent had climbed above $126 a barrel.
Meanwhile, India expects oil prices both gas an oil to ease in the coming months. Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in a media interaction revealed India to have sufficient stocks available despite the choking of Strait of Hormuz that has squeezed energy supplies. Oil prices cannot remain at their current height for “a very long time” and are expected to fall in the months ahead, Puri said. He also added expected suppliers from the Western Hemisphere, including the U.S. and Canada, to make up for shortages.
Global oil prices surged by 40% of its crude export and about 9% of its LPG imports, used for cooking through the conduit before operations were suspended prior to the war.
World’s biggest crude importer China has reported a major slump in oil procurement to the lowest in more than eight years last month as the Iran war crimped supply and Beijing scrambled for replacements.