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Oil prices surged more than 5 percent on Monday, with West Texas Intermediate settling at $82.13 per barrel and Brent crude closing at $87.72, as Iran rejected negotiations and the Strait of Hormuz remained closed to commercial shipping.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei stated that the strait would not reopen as long as the U.S. naval blockade continues. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi listed conditions for any resumption of talks, including eased sanctions, U.S. military withdrawal from the region, and release of frozen Iranian assets. Iran also denied being in direct negotiations with the Trump administration, contradicting earlier U.S. statements that a deal was progressing. An advisor to Iranian Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf said plainly: "Trump will not reach an agreement with us. We will accompany him until his term ends."
The Department of Energy reported that the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell by 6.1 million barrels last week to 298.7 million barrels — the lowest level since January 1983. The SPR held approximately 415 million barrels before U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Trump ordered the release of 172 million barrels in March to keep domestic fuel prices in check. A Government Accountability Office report from May found that more than a quarter of SPR inventory is unavailable for drawdown due to aging infrastructure.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — historically responsible for roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies — has dropped sharply. Between August 4 and August 6, daily transits fell to between 8 and 15 vessels, down from approximately 130 before hostilities began. At least 64 violent incidents and 17 deaths involving commercial vessels have been recorded since the conflict began. Oil prices are now running approximately 16 percent above pre-war levels. The Trump administration told Axios on Sunday it is "only semi-negotiating" with Tehran and will continue economic pressure through the naval blockade.
