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Update: WTI Oil Edges Higher Even as Hormuz Shipping Recovers, Iran Talks Ease Supply Concerns

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(Updated prices in the second paragraph)

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil edged higher on Thursday, even as supply concerns continue to ease with tankers stranded in the Persian Gulf since the start of the Iran war resuming transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

WTI crude oil for August delivery closed up 0.2% to settle at $68.69 per barrel, while September Brent oil was last seen up 0.2% to $71.68.

The rise comes even as ships continued to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply disruptions caused by the conflict. According to HormuzStraitMonitor.co, five ships transited the strait over the past day, leaving about 380 vessels still waiting in the queue.

Peace talks between the US and Iran are said to be advancing, with the Wall Street Journal reporting indirect talks between the nations are progressing well,

U.S. inventories continued to fall last week, with the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday said commercial crude oil inventories and releases from the Strategic Oil Reserve dropped by a combined 13.1-million barrels last week.

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