Interestingly, this incident occurred despite the heightened military presence of the United States and the United Kingdom in the area, as announced the previous week under Operation Prosperity Guardian. However, several nations, including Denmark, Norway, Italy, France, Spain, and Sweden, withdrew from the alliance, expressing a preference for operating under NATO leadership rather than American authority.
While WTI was initially trading at around $75 per barrel, Brent crude surpassed $80 per barrel, reaching $81 on Tuesday. This suggests that, despite concerns about potential supply disruptions, market sentiment continues to focus on the delicate balance between supply and demand, revealing signs of weakness in the latter.
Reuters' Senior Analyst, Phillip Nova, highlighted the ongoing uncertainty regarding how the crisis will impact global supplies. Despite redirected vessels and interrupted transportation lanes, discussions persist regarding the extent of the effect on world supplies.
Senior Analyst Priyanka Sachdeva, also from Reuters, pointed out the added complexity to the situation due to the thin market depth resulting from the current Christmas season. As per a Bloomberg report, expectations remain that oil prices will decline for the first time in three years, despite the recent uptick.
