Brent crude settled 3.86% higher at $103.08 a barrel on Wednesday; U.S. WTI rose 1.81% to $92.16. Traders weighed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian's vow not to surrender to the United States, though he said Tehran still believes in diplomacy.
Donald Trump had warned a day earlier that he could “annihilate” Iran. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran was reviewing Washington's response to its proposal to end hostilities, though many differences remained; indirect talks on Tuesday discussed reopening the Strait of Hormuz and lifting the U.S. naval blockade. Security chief Mohsen Rezaei said the strait would remain closed until Iran's conditions were met. A senior Iranian official said it could reopen within seven days if the U.S. eased military pressure and lifted the blockade.
Earlier, increased Middle East supplies and hopes for a peace deal had pressured prices. Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline to the Red Sea resumed operations Tuesday, according to three sources briefed on the matter. U.S. crude inventories rose 3 million barrels to 426.4 million in the week ended Sept. 18; analysts had expected a 641,000-barrel draw, while fuel stocks fell. Ultra-low-sulfur diesel futures dropped about 5% after Politico reported the Trump administration was preparing plans for a 90-day diesel ban, a report the White House denied. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said a diesel export ban would not work.
