The day President Donald Trump said he was unsure if he was willing to make peace with Iran and still considered his options, crude oil prices rose more than 5%.
At the same time, the President said Iran had allowed the passage of 10 oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz as a “gift” to show it was negotiating in good faith.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 5.3% or more than $5 a barrel to settle at $107.66.
West Texas Intermediate in the states gained 4.5% or nearly $4 a barrel and closed at $94.34 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude reached $120 a barrel just a few weeks ago. Now there is a fear prices might escalate again as the Pentagon prepares scenarios for “a massive final blow” in Iran, as President Donald Trump warned the country to make a deal to end the war “before it’s too late.”
One of the options could be an invasion of Kharg Island which is considered a vital component of Iran’s oil network.
Natural gas prices also recorded gains in Thursday’s trading. They settled at $2.975 MMBtu with an increase of $0.023 or 0.78%.
Gasoline prices, according to AAA, were unchanged on Thursday and remained at $3.98 a gallon average while diesel fuel averaged $5.37 per gallon, an increase of a penny in one day.
Oklahoma’s average gasoline prices fell a penny to $3.25 per gallon and diesel fuel did the same and dropped to $4.49 per gallon, according to AAA.
Thursday was another good day for most Oklahoma energy stocks, including Mammoth Energy Services where there was a more than 12% gain in its shares. On the reverse side, Stardust Power fell 11%.