-- US equity indexes were lower ahead of Thursday's close as Iran reportedly set up an agency to control shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and Washington considered restarting defence operations to provide safe passage for ships stranded at the critical waterway.
The Nasdaq slid 0.3% to 25,755.7, after touching a record 26,036.38 intraday amid concern that a peace agreement between the US and Iran could be at risk. The S&P 500 retreated 0.4% to 7,336.5 after hitting an all-time high of 7,385.02 earlier in the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6% to 49,592.8 in the final leg of trading.
Iran has created a government agency to vet and tax vessels seeking passage through Hormuz, an Associated Press report cited a shipping data company Thursday. Tehran has laid out a new set of rules for vessels seeking to transit the chokepoint through which about 20% of global crude oil flows, according to a document seen by CNN.
Entitled "Vessel Information Declaration," the document is an application form issued by Iran's newly created Persian Gulf Strait Authority, and it must be completed by all transiting vessels to ensure safe passage, CNN reported. The document was shared with CNN by the Lloyds List and another shipping industry source who wished to remain anonymous, according to the news report.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is looking to restart an operation to guide commercial ships through Hormuz with naval and air support as early as this week, after Saudi Arabia and Kuwait lifted restrictions on US access to their bases and airspaces, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing Pentagon officials.
The US is still awaiting Iran's response to its peace proposal. The two countries are said to be working with mediators to formulate a one-page framework to restart talks aimed at ending the war and reopening Hormuz.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures added 0.7% to $95.75, while Brent crude futures declined 0.2% to $101.03. Both WTI and Brent futures are off session lows of more than 3% each.