Oil Prices Dip as White House Weighs Easing Shadow Fleet Sanctions

Brent crude slipped to $104.39 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate hovered at $94.02 following a mid-week rally. The current shipping bottleneck is tied to a surge in ship-to-ship transfers near the Strait of Hormuz, where the looming threat of drone and missile strikes has forced insurers to hike premiums and reduced the number of vessels willing to operate in the region.

According to an unnamed official, the U.S. Treasury Department may soon allow shippers to apply for waivers to use tankers currently under sanction for transporting Russian, Venezuelan, or Iranian energy products. While the move is designed to lower freight costs—which have begun to dampen demand for American crude—analysts remain skeptical of its efficacy. Energy Aspects noted that many vessels already on the sanctions list have continued to trade actively throughout the last quarter, suggesting that lifting restrictions may provide only symbolic relief to the global supply chain. The proposal follows a controversial U.S.-Russia diesel agreement, which drew sharp criticism from legislators concerned that any expansion of Russian export capacity ultimately funds the ongoing war effort.