Crude oil prices look set to be kept down, as that is the real message of the latest policy signal. x.comÂ
Sean D. Emory
Founding Partner & CIO of Avory & Co., Avory Foundational ETF (AVRY)
Crude oil's war premium should fade as the conflict moves toward resolution. The WTI futures curve is in steep backwardation, from $111 for May to $72 by December, near the pre-war $68, pricing a shock that fades rather than a permanent disruption. When ceasefire hopes emerged, energy fell 5.7% in four days while growth sectors rallied. Energy is lifting inflation readings only temporarily, while shelter, about 40% of CPI, is at 3.0% and falling. x.comÂ
Crude oil's latest drop reflects real Gulf export capacity coming back, which erodes Iran's Hormuz leverage. Saudi Arabia resumed loadings at Yanbu, with the East-West Pipeline at 2-2.65m barrels a day and seen by Kpler rising to 3-4m soon. Saudi and UAE shuttle tankers under US escort have restored at least 60% of pre-war flows. The risk: Qatar's mediation is stuck, per Axios, and a squeezed Iran may escalate against ports, refineries, pipelines or Red Sea shipping. x.comÂ
Crude oil's geopolitical risk premium is fading fast after an official US-Iran joint statement from Switzerland, backed by Qatar and Pakistan. It sets a 60-day roadmap toward a final deal, a direct Hormuz communication channel, partial release of frozen Iranian assets and eased oil and petrochemical export restrictions. Oil erased its recent gains as US futures jumped. x.comÂ
Oil stays above $80 well past the midterms because the supply problem persists despite peace headlines. Ships are still attacked near Saudi Arabia, Yemen and the UAE; a reported US strike on Iran's Konarak Naval Base ended nearly seven weeks without US strikes. There is nobody in Iran who can sign a deal and end the conflict. x.comÂ
Oil's slide from $120 during the war to $79 should continue as the US-Iran deal, due to be signed on the 19th in Switzerland, reopens the Strait of Hormuz and ends the US naval blockade, restoring choked supply. Cheaper oil lowers US inflation and flips the market from expecting another hike toward rate cuts, lifting risk assets. The deal is only a 60-day MOU, though, and Israel is the problem: if anything blows up, oil rips and the chain runs in reverse. x.comÂ
Crude oil looks headed lower as tanker traffic through the strait nears pre-war levels and Trump makes cheaper oil a priority. Per CNN via @Osint613, the U.S. moved 40 tankers carrying about 18 million barrels through the strait on Tuesday, a daily record since the war began and only slightly below the pre-war 20 million. Once the Iran saga is over, oil will probably be cheaper than before the war. x.com x.comÂ
The Strait of Hormuz situation looks bad for oil supply, because Iran has the leverage to keep control of it and collect tolls. Iranian drones have changed the equation despite substantial US air and naval power, there has been no uprising, and any ground invasion would take very long. Saudi Arabia and Qatar lack the naval muscle and rely on the US, and new pipelines take years, so affected countries will have to play ball for at least a few years. x.com x.com x.com x.com x.comÂ
Crude oil faces near-term pressure as Trump said US-Iran talks were productive and pledged no strikes before the November 3 elections; Brent fell to $103.36. Supply risks persist, however, with attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and 1.3 million barrels a day of Gulf of Mexico production shut in ahead of Hurricane Isaias. x.comÂ
Crude oil's biggest bullish catalyst has disappeared with the prospect of the Strait of Hormuz reopening. Per The Kobeissi Letter, President Trump said he cancelled a US attack on Iran and that the perimeters of a deal, including a total reopening of the strait, have been agreed. x.comÂ
Oil should already be far higher, near $200, as the Hormuz standoff deepens. Per @KobeissiLetter, citing the WSJ, Iran told mediators it will not send a delegation for peace talks until the US lifts its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, while President Trump says he has all the time in the world. x.comÂ
Crude oil should calm as US-Iran de-escalation gathers real momentum. Trump says a peace deal is coming Sunday; Iran is playing its usual timeline games, but de-escalation would bring oil down and give markets the green light. x.comÂ