Oil prices swung violently around the $100 mark on Wednesday in New York and London trading, after Donald Trump said US forces could leave Iran 'in two or three weeks' even as the vital Strait of Hormuz remains largely shut to tanker traffic.
The news came after weeks of extreme turbulence in energy markets since the US‑Israeli offensive against Iran began on 28 February, choking off a waterway that normally carries about a fifth of the world's seaborne crude. Benchmark contracts have ricocheted higher as traders tried to price in the risk of a prolonged supply squeeze centred on the Middle East's most sensitive shipping route.
