Oil prices erase wartime gains as supply concerns ease with Hormuz tanker traffic resuming

Oil tankers and cargo vessels remain anchored off Port Sultan Qaboos on June 21, 2026 in Muscat, Oman. The Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route for the region's oil and gas, was effectively blockaded since the outbreak of war between the United States and Iran in late February. On Sunday, U.S. Vice President JD Vance arrived in Switzerland for high-level talks with the Iranian delegation, as the two sides seek to clarify the terms of ending the war. Elke Scholiers | Getty Images News | Getty Images Oil prices erased wartime gains on Thursday as investors bet global crude supplies would improve after tankers that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for months began leaving the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. crude for August delivery dropped 1.66% to around $69 a barrel and Brent declined 1.79% to under $73 a barrel, hovering at levels seen before the Middle East war broke out in late February. More than 20 oil tankers carrying about 35 million barrels of crude have passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the U.S. and Iran reached an agreement to reopen the key shipping route, according to trade-tracking firm Kpler. The non-Iranian vessels had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for more than three months after Tehran effectively shut the waterway early in the conflict. Most are expected to arrive at destinations in Asia by early August. …