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Summary
- Brent, WTI down nearly 2%
- Iran says no progress on reviving interim peace deal with US
- Both IEA and OPEC lower 2026 oil demand forecasts
(Reuters) – Oil prices declined on Thursday as investors assessed prospects for weaker global demand this year and higher U.S. crude stocks, while prices found support from a lack of progress in talks over the blockaded Strait of Hormuz and disruptions to supply.
Brent futures were down $1.66, or 1.9%, to $87.32 a barrel at 0935 GMT, trimming gains over the prior six sessions.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell $1.62, or 1.95%, to $81.65, after advancing over the past five sessions.
The large crude build in the U.S. last week is a headwind for crude prices, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo, adding that the downside for prices should be limited as long as flows through the Strait of Hormuz remain depressed.
U.S. commercial crude oil inventories made their largest weekly gain since January 2023 as exports slumped, data from the Energy Information Administration showed on Wednesday.
Crude inventories rose by 17.4 million barrels to 424.4 million in the week ended August 7, their highest since June 5, the EIA said, versus Reuters poll expectations for a 1.4 million-barrel draw.
On the same day, OPEC lowered its world oil demand growth forecast for 2026 to 580,000 barrels per day in its monthly oil market report.
The IEA said it expected a contraction of 1.6 million bpd in consumption this year, versus a forecast of 1 million bpd last month, with demand curtailed by higher prices and restricted supply due to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
Supply disruptions in the Middle East and the Black Sea continued to support oil prices.
On Wednesday a senior Iranian source said there had been no progress in talks to revive an interim U.S.-Iranian deal agreed in June and define a timeframe to implement it.
Strait of Hormuz vessel crossings excluding container ships dropped to five on Wednesday, their lowest in three weeks, according to shipping data by Kpler.
Elsewhere, Russia struck Ukraine’s Izmail port area in the southern Odesa region overnight, while a drone attack triggered a fire in an industrial area in Salavat in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan, home to a large oil refinery.
Reporting by Sam Li in Beijing and Siyi Liu in Singapore. Editing by Sonali Paul, Clarence Fernandez and Mark Potter
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