A draft agreement to end the war between the US and Iran includes a pledge from Tehran to return the number of commercial ships passing the strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month, Iranian state television reported today.
Crude futures fell sharply after the report, with front-month Ice Brent approaching $94/bl, the lowest intraday level since 21 April. Prices subsequently regained some ground, with Ice Brent down by around 4pc as of 13:45 GMT.
Broadcaster IRIB said it had seen a "first draft" of a 14-point agreement that said "managing the passage of ships… and receiving fees for services remains at the discretion of [Iran], which will work in co-operation with Oman".
In return, IRIB said the US has pledged to lift the maritime blockade on Iran, and has agreed to "make a commitment" on the issue of its military presence in countries neighbouring Iran.
Details of the latter agreement are unclear. None of this has been confirmed by the governments in Tehran or Washington, although US president Donald Trump on 23 May said an agreement with Iran to reopen the strait of Hormuz has been "largely negotiated".
Today's IRIB report contains no mention of agreement on other key issues, like Iran's nuclear programme, or on the repatriation of funds to Tehran.

