Oil Prices Rebound to $97 on Fragile US-Iran Ceasefire

Oil prices rebounded sharply on Thursday, climbing more than 2 percent to around $97 per barrel for Brent crude, as a fragile two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran faced immediate challenges from Israeli military actions in Lebanon and uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The truce, announced late Tuesday by President Donald Trump on social media, halted a six-week conflict that began in late February and had disrupted global energy supplies. Trump stated that the agreement suspended U.S. bombing and attacks on Iran, describing it as a "double-sided ceasefire" to allow negotiations toward a long-term peace deal. He noted that the U.S. had exceeded its military objectives and received a 10-point proposal from Iran as a basis for talks, with most points of contention already resolved. Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi confirmed the halt in hostilities, saying Tehran would reciprocate if attacks ceased and guarantee safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks, subject to coordination with Iranian authorities. The waterway, which handles about 20 percent of global oil shipments, had been largely impassable during the...