Overview
- Brent crude pushed past $120 on Wednesday and briefly hit the $120–$126 range early Thursday in Asia, marking the highest levels since 2022 across several trading sessions.
- President Donald Trump rejected Tehran’s offer tied to reopening the Strait of Hormuz and said the U.S. naval blockade will stay in place until Iran agrees to a nuclear deal, after he met oil executives about managing a months‑long squeeze.
- U.S. Central Command said it had redirected its 42nd commercial vessel under the blockade and reported 41 tankers holding about 69 million barrels that Iran cannot sell, underscoring tighter enforcement at sea.
- Analysts at Goldman Sachs said Hormuz flows have fallen to a fraction of normal levels and Persian Gulf output has been sharply curtailed, while the UAE’s OPEC exit on May 1 is unlikely to ease near‑term tightness while the chokepoint stays constrained.
- Axios reported that CENTCOM prepared options for a short, forceful strike campaign and that Admiral Brad Cooper would brief Trump on Thursday, in a development that investors view as a fresh escalation risk.