Crude oil prices held firm on Friday, May 22, with July WTI futures settling at approximately $96.36 per barrel after recovering from a one-week low earlier in the session, supported by the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the absence of any finalised peace agreement between the United States and Iran.
July RBOB gasoline futures also rose sharply on the day, gaining around 2.54% to reflect tightening refined product supplies as the Hormuz disruption continued to limit the flow of crude reaching international refineries.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, added 96 cents to close at $103.54 per barrel, though both grades posted weekly losses of between 5% and 7% as investors priced in growing optimism that the US and Iran are moving closer to a deal that could reopen the critical waterway.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately a fifth of global seaborne oil flows, has been effectively closed to normal commercial shipping since the US-Iran war began earlier in 2026, producing what the International Energy Agency has described as the largest supply shock in oil market history.
Ceasefire talks resumed this week, with President Trump saying Monday that he had called off planned strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure to allow more time for negotiations, a move that initially pushed oil sharply lower before prices rebounded as the two sides remained deadlocked on core issues.
The principal sticking points are Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile and a proposed toll system for Strait of Hormuz traffic that Iran is reportedly developing in partnership with Oman, a framework that Trump has explicitly rejected, insisting the waterway must remain open and free.
Iran’s Supreme Leader was reported on Friday to have issued fresh orders regarding the country’s enriched uranium reserves, a development that pushed Brent above $105 during the session before gains moderated into the close.
US gasoline prices at the pump have exceeded four dollars a gallon across much of the country for the first time in over three years, a direct consequence of the Hormuz closure that has become one of the most politically sensitive economic issues facing the Trump administration.
OPEC+ has been considering a potential output increase in response to the supply shock, though analysts have cautioned that any additional production would take time to reach markets and would not immediately offset the volumes lost through the Hormuz closure.
Market participants expect oil prices to remain volatile until either a peace framework is agreed or a reliable alternative shipping arrangement for Hormuz traffic is established, with both outcomes still uncertain as of Friday’s close.
