Oil prices lower, stocks higher as Hormuz doubts drag on
A person works near an oil tanker docked at the Port of Fujairah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran limits marine traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, May 6, 2026. (File photo: REUTERS/Amr Alfiky)
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
LONDON: Oil prices fell back in choppy trading and stock markets were marginally higher Tuesday (Aug 11) as investors weighed fading expectations of higher interest rates against concern over oil flows from the Middle East.
Oil prices initially rose more than 2 per cent with the United States and Iran appearing not to make much progress towards a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Oil contracts later gave up those gains, but are still up around 10 per cent in the past five days and are trading near their highest levels since early June.
“Crude oil has surged over the past few days as hopes of a US-Iran agreement that would fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz have faded,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at FOREX.com.
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
But “we have also heard contradictory messages from Washington and Tehran”, he said.
In New York, the Dow and the wider S&P edged higher while the tech-heavy Nasdaq opened lower. In mid-afternoon European trading, Frankfurt, London and Paris were all up slightly.
“The slight drop in expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes following the weak US payroll report have supported equities,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.
“But rising crude oil prices … and further delays in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, have introduced fresh inflation risks.”
Asian equities ended mixed, with Tokyo closed for a holiday.
In their latest exchanges, Donald Trump and Iranian leaders each insisted Monday that they were owed reparation payments by the other.
The prospect of oil prices remaining elevated for the time being has revived concerns over inflation and boosted the chances of higher interest rates.
Last week’s report of a surprise loss of over 20,000 jobs in the US economy last month had eased fears of a Federal Reserve rate hike.
Attention now turns to the release of US consumer price data on Wednesday, which could play a key role in guiding the Fed on its next move.
“The Fed problem is becoming more awkward,” said Patrick Munnelly at the Tickmill Group.
“Labour-market cooling can justify patience, but energy-driven inflation can undermine that patience if it lifts headline CPI, gasoline prices and household inflation expectations,” he said.
Source: AFP/fh
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
