Oil prices plunged Friday after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the vital Strait of Hormuz was “completely open” for commercial tankers and cargo ships during the US-Iran ceasefire.
International benchmark Brent North Sea crude plunged 10 percent to $89.11 a barrel, after earlier falling five percent on US-Iran peace deal hopes. The main US contract, West Texas Intermediate, shed 11 percent to $84.11 a barrel.
Stock markets diverged, and oil prices fell on Friday as investors awaited news of a possible extension of the Iran-US ceasefire, with the first passage of Iranian oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz in weeks bolstering hopes.
Several indices reached record highs this week, including the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq in New York on Thursday, on signs the Middle East war could be nearing an end as US President Donald Trump said negotiators were close to a deal.
But worries abound that a shaky truce agreed earlier this month — and which ends next week — could fall apart and spark a fresh market rout.
Oil prices tumbled on hopes of Gulf supply resuming, with the international benchmark Brent down 3.0 percent to $96.42 a barrel.
After Asian stock markets mostly closed lower, the Paris and Frankfurt markets advanced in European midday deals while London dipped.
