Crude futures saw prices rise over 6 percent on Wednesday amid reports that U.S. President Donald Trump told aides and energy companies to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran's ports
The West Texas Intermediate for June delivery went up 6.95 U.S. dollars, or 6.95 percent, to settle at 106.88 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for June delivery gained 6.77 U.S. dollars, or 6.08 percent, to settle at 118.03 U.S. dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Iran can't get their act together. They don't know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon, Trump said in a post on social media early Wednesday.
Earlier, media reports said that Trump had instructed his administration to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran as the ceasefire remains in place amid stalled talks.
The ongoing stalemate in U.S.-Iran negotiations makes any near-term normalization of flows through Hormuz increasingly unlikely, said Linh Tran, an analyst with online trading platform XS.com. The market is no longer simply pricing in risk, but rather a prolonged period of supply disruption.
Crude oil prices gain over 6 pct on persistent tensions in Strait of Hormuz
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump held a phone conversation on Wednesday, discussing the recent shooting at the White House press dinner, the situation in Iran and the Ukraine crisis, the Kremlin said.
The Russian president informed his U.S. counterpart of Russia's readiness to declare a truce with Ukraine for the period of Victory Day commemorations.
Trump voiced strong support for the initiative, noting that "the holiday marks our common victory over Nazism in World War II," said Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov after the phone conversation that lasted over an hour and a half.
At Trump's request, Putin described the current situation along the contact line with Ukraine, where Russian troops maintain the strategic initiative and are pushing back enemy positions, said Ushakov.
Putin reaffirmed that the goals of the special military operation will be achieved in any case, the aide said. Russia would prefer this to be achieved through negotiations, for which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskymust respond positively to the well-known proposals that have been repeatedly put forward, including by the U.S. side, he said. Russia has handed over more than 20,000 bodies of the deceased to Ukraine, Putin told Trump, adding that Ukraine has returned just over 500 bodies to Russia since the beginning of 2025.
Among the issues on the international agenda, the two leaders focused primarily on the situation in Iran and the Persian Gulf, according to the Kremlin.
Putin viewed Trump's decision to extend the ceasefire with Iran as the right move, as it will help stabilize the situation, Ushakov said, adding that Putin drew attention to the inevitable, extremely dire consequences not only for Iran and its neighbors, but also for the entire international community should the United States and Israel resort to force again.
Russia remains firmly determined to fully support diplomatic efforts aimed at finding a peaceful settlement to the crisis, and has put forward a number of proposals intended to resolve differences over the Iranian nuclear program, said the presidential aide.
Ushakov noted that to this end, Moscow will maintain active contacts with Iranian representatives, leaders of Persian Gulf states, as well as with Israel and the U.S. negotiating team.
For his part, Trump also outlined his assessment of the Middle East situation to Putin.
Putin, Trump hold phone call on issues of Iran, Ukraine
