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EMEA Oil Update: Crude Mixed After Iran, Oman Agree on Framework to Reopen Hormuz

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EMEA crude futures diverged in after-hours trading on Wednesday after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard said Tehran has reached an agreement with Oman to share control of the Strait of Hormuz, a deal that could potentially lead to the resumption of shipping via the strategic waterway.

Brent crude futures eased 0.2% to $88.71 per barrel, while Murban crude futures fell 1.8% to $91.68/bbl.

Erik Meyersson, chief EM strategist at SEB Research, said that the crude market's adaptability has so far surprised positively: supply has increased, demand has fallen, and strategic oil reserves have been released.

On Wednesday, Iran and Oman agreed on a phased framework to facilitate the resumption of safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, according to local media reports.

The framework includes establishing a joint temporary navigational corridor, a joint mine-clearance project, and further technical talks on a permanent navigation route and the future administration of the strategic waterway.

"I am hopeful we will soon announce a temporary corridor for the Strait of Hormuz and practical arrangements to restore safe navigation," Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi said in a social media post on X on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, President Trump repeated claims that the water mines in the Hormuz had been removed or detonated and the key energy chokepoint is open. Trump said the US Navy is taking a lot of ships through the strait, adding that some 10 million barrels transited the strategic waterway yesterday.

Meanwhile, the situation in the Hormuz, which previously handled about 20% of the world's oil, remains complex.

Commercial vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait dropped on Tuesday, according to the latest data from MarineTraffic, underscoring continued caution among operators navigating the Middle East's key energy chokepoints.

Hormuz recorded five confirmed vessel crossings, down 28.6% from seven a day earlier, MarineTraffic said, adding that two vessels entered the Middle East Gulf while three exited, with all five transits using Iran's Unilateral Scheme.

Traffic via Bab el-Mandeb also fell, with 36 confirmed crossings on Aug. 25, down 7.7% from 39 the previous day. MarineTraffic said that 15 vessels entered the Red Sea and 21 exited.

On the supply front, US commercial crude oil inventories increased by 100,000 barrels to 428.9 mmbbls in the week ended Aug. 21, the Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report released Wednesday.

Crude inventories are 1% above the five-year average for this time of year, the EIA said. The build is below Investing.com's estimate of a 1.6-mmbbl build for the week ended Aug. 21.

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