Oil drops below major threshold as supply fears ease

June 24, 2026 (MLN): Oil prices continued to fall on Wednesday as easing fears of major supply disruptions and improving maritime conditions in the Strait of Hormuz weighed on sentiment.

Currently, Brent crude futures is down by $1.57, or 2.04%, to $75.51 per barrel, according to data by Mettis Global.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures is down by $1.47, or 2.01%, to $71.74 per barrel by [2:26 am] PST.

In the United States, political pressure also entered the energy debate.

President Donald Trump accused major oil companies of failing to pass on lower crude costs to consumers at the fuel pump, saying gasoline prices should be falling faster.

In a post on Truth Social, he suggested that consumers were being overcharged and indicated that the Department of Justice had been directed to review the issue. The DOJ has not yet issued a response.

However, energy analysts pushed back on the claim, arguing that retail fuel pricing does not move in lockstep with crude oil, according to CNBC.

A senior research scholar at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, Karen Young, described such commentary as largely political in nature, noting that gasoline prices are influenced by multiple layers including taxes, refining margins, and distribution delays.

She added that it typically takes time often weeks for changes in crude prices to fully filter through to pump prices.

Separately, sentiment in global energy and shipping markets improved after signs that maritime activity through the Strait of Hormuz could gradually normalize.

The International Maritime Organization said more than 11,000 seafarers who had been stranded in the Persian Gulf are expected to begin transiting through the strait following new safety assurances.

IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez confirmed that coordinated efforts involving Iran, Oman, other regional coastal states, the United States, and the shipping industry had enabled safer navigation conditions.

Logistics firms also noted ongoing pressure on global supply chains due to earlier disruptions.

DHL Global Forwarding Greater China CEO Aditi Rasquinha said longer shipping routes and constrained air freight capacity had strained operations, though a reopening of the strait would likely ease some of these bottlenecks over time.

However, she cautioned that normalization across global supply chains would not be immediate.

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