Crude oil prices across the globe fell again on Thursday in what some analysts are calling a “dramatic collapse” with the settlement between Iran and the U.S. and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz as crude oil tankers began sailing with their loads of Middle East oil. Prices have fallen nearly 38% since reaching a four-month high in April and both benchmarks dropped nearly 10% this week.
At one point in Thursday’s trading, Brent crude, the global benchmark, dropped below $77 per barrel as each benchmark dropped nearly 3%. It was the lowest level since the early days of the war. The memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran launched 60 days of negotiations to a broader agreement.
By mid-afternoon, Brent reversed course and ticked up 0.2% or a few cents to close at $79.69 a barrel.
West Texas Intermediate crude futures, considered the U.S. standard, dropped about half a percent and closed at $76.66 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
But the flow of ships out of the Middle East still won’t bring an immediate relief as oil inventories continue to shrink worldwide. The International Energy Agency estimates global stocks have been drawing at a rate of about 4 million barrels a day since the start of the war in late February. U.S. crude inventories dropped 50 million barrels in 9 weeks and the storage levels at the Cushing Hub in Oklahoma are still at close to Operational minimum.
Natural gas managed a nearly 3% gain on Thursday, settling a $3.231 MMBtu with an increase of $0.086 or 2.73%.
Thursday was another tough day for Oklahoma energy stocks as they experienced mostly losses. Still, some firms such as Empire Petroleum gained a strong 6% and USA Rare Earth rose 4%.