Oil jumps again after Iran says it has closed Hormuz Strait
Crude prices jumped more than 8% after Iran said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz, stoking fears the US–Iran war could trigger major supply disruptions
Oil prices jumped again after Iran said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz, as traders feared the war between the United States and Iran could spiral out of control and lead to a major supply disruption.
CNBC reported that crude prices surged more than 8% on Monday (March 2, 2026) because market participants were concerned that the US–Iran war could escalate beyond control and trigger a significant disruption to supply.
US crude rose 8.4%, or $5.72, to settle at $72.74 a barrel. The rally extended after the market closed in regular trading hours following a new report saying Iran stated it had already closed the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent, the global benchmark, jumped 9%, or $6.65, to settle at $79.45 a barrel.
The settlement was the highest since the United States and Israel bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities in June 2025.
Oil had risen more than 12% earlier in the day before retreating from the intraday high.
Oil prices climbed again after the close after Reuters reported comments by a commander in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who said the Strait of Hormuz had been closed and that Iran would set fire to any ship that tried to sail through.
The major air strikes launched by the United States and Israel against Iran over the weekend reportedly resulted in the deaths of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior officials in the Islamic Republic.
It remains unclear who will ultimately govern the country, which is OPEC’s fourth-largest oil producer.
Ultimately, the oil market’s reaction will depend on whether the war leads to a disruption of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which is the world’s most strategically important chokepoint for the global oil trade.
“We see the pace of recovery in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the extent of Iran’s retaliation as key for oil prices in the coming days,” UBS analysts led by Giovanni Staunovo said in a report to clients on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that military operations would continue until all US objectives were achieved.
Trump had previously said Iran wanted talks and that he agreed to negotiate, opening the possibility of de-escalation to avoid a prolonged disruption.
“They want to negotiate, and I agree to negotiate, so I’m going to negotiate with them,” Trump told The Atlantic on Sunday.
The president also told CNBC that US military operations in Iran were “ahead of schedule”.
However, Iran’s security chief Ali Larijani rejected negotiations with the United States.
He said the joint US–Israeli strikes had dragged the entire region into an unnecessary war.
“We will not negotiate with the United States,” the former adviser to the late supreme leader said in a social media post, rejecting reports that Iran was trying to restart talks with Washington.
Traffic by oil tankers through the strait has already been disrupted because shipping companies have taken precautionary measures, according to consultancy Rystad Energy.
“Right now, it appears nothing is moving. Tankers are definitely spooked,” said Matt Smith, an oil analyst at energy consultancy Kpler.
According to Kpler, in 2025 the average volume of crude passing through the strait exceeded 14 million barrels a day — about one-third of all global seaborne crude exports — with roughly three-quarters of those exports going to China, India, Japan and South Korea.
Barclays analysts told clients in a note on Saturday that Brent could rise to $100 a barrel as security conditions in the Middle East worsen.
UBS analysts told clients it was possible the market could face major turbulence that could push Brent above $120 a barrel.
“The outcome remains highly uncertain at this stage, but in the meantime the oil market will have to contend with its worst fears,” said Amarpreat Singh, a Barclays analyst, in a note to clients. “The potential impact on the oil market is hard to understate.”
Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, said Iran’s oil exports could fall sharply amid uncertainty over who will run the country in Tehran, domestic unrest and labour strikes in the country’s oil-producing regions and ports.
Iran produces about 3.3 million barrels of oil per day.
