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Markets will respond to Hormuz: US DOE chief

  • Spanish Market: Crude oil, Natural gas
  • 23/03/26

Oil markets will eventually sort out the impacts of disruption to Mideast Gulf oil and gas supply, US energy secretary Chris Wright said on Monday.

"Markets do what markets do," Wright said at the CERAWeek by S&P Global event in Houston, Texas. "Prices went up to send signals to everyone that could produce more, 'please, produce more'. Prices have not risen high enough yet to drive meaningful demand destruction, but Americans and energy entrepreneurs around the world are ingenious. So things are being done."

Wright largely downplayed the impacts to energy markets from the US war against Iran, dedicating most of his remarks to touting President Donald Trump's pro-oil and gas policies and criticizing former president Joe Biden's energy policies.

The Trump administration has ordered a drawdown from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve but that drawdown is not at all like the release ordered by the Biden administration, Wright said. "It was used four years ago to lower gasoline prices to help election results. That's not what strategic petroleum reserve stocks are for."

By Haik Gugarats

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23/03/26

Adnoc chief pushes US to address Hormuz

Adnoc chief pushes US to address Hormuz

Houston, 23 March (Argus) — Abu Dhabi's state-owned Adnoc chief executive Sultan al-Jaber is in Washington to press the US administration to address the disruption to oil flows through the strait of Hormuz. Al-Jaber was scheduled to speak at CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston, Texas, Monday morning but instead traveled to Washington to "hold a series of senior-level bilateral meetings", Adnoc said. "Al-Jaber's presence in the US capital reflects that engagements there will focus on the Hormuz situation, global energy supply continuity, and the UAE-US strategic partnership." Mideast Gulf oil producers over the weekend urged the US to address the disruption to oil flows through the strait of Hormuz quickly. "When Hormuz is squeezed, the pressure is immediately felt around the world," al-Jaber said in a pre-recorded video address to CERAWeek. "In just three weeks, the price of oil has risen by 50pc." Hormuz is a security issue, not an oil supply issue, al-Jaber said. "It has only one durable answer: keeping the Strait open. We cannot trade our way out of this crisis." Oil markets could respond to the Hormuz disruption through increased supply and through demand destruction, US energy secretary Chris Wright said at the start of the CERAWeek conference. "Weaponizing the strait of Hormuz is not an act of aggression against one nation," al-Jaber said. "It's economic terrorism against every nation. And no country should be allowed to hold Hormuz hostage. Not now. Not ever." US president Donald Trump turned up pressure on Iran to reopen the strait over the weekend by threatening to attack Iranian power plants starting Monday, but he put that plan on pause early today to allow what he said were talks between the two sides to continue. By Haik Gugarats and Bachar Halabi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Trump orders pause in Iran strikes: Update

23/03/26
23/03/26

Trump orders pause in Iran strikes: Update

Adds remarks from Trump Dubai, 23 March (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said on Monday he ordered a five-day halt to a planned round of strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure after holding "very strong" talks with unidentified officials who "seem to be running" Iran. Tehran has denied holding direct or indirect talks with the US, state-linked news agency Fars said. But Trump said the talks, which began on Sunday and are expected to continue on Monday, were intended to reach a deal to resolve the war in Iran. "We're dealing with some people that I find to be very reasonable very solid," Trump told reporters on Monday. "The people within know who they are. They're very respected, and maybe one of them will be exactly what we're looking for. Look at Venezuela, how well that's working out." In a Truth Social post earlier on Monday, Trump said the two sides had engaged in "in-depth, detailed and constructive" discussions over the past two days on achieving a "complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East". He said further meetings would continue this week and that the pause in military action was conditional on the "success of the ongoing meetings and discussions". Front-month Ice Brent crude fell to as low as $96/bl in intra-day trading, down from the settlement price of $112.19/bl on 20 March. It is now trending at around $100/bl. European gas prices also tumbled in response to the post. The front-month contract at the benchmark TTF gas hub dropped by 17pc in the space of eight minutes, to just over €54/MWh at 11:10 GMT. The price was near €55/MWh by 14:22 GMT. Trump's announcement marks a sharp shift from his weekend ultimatum demanding Iran fully reopen the strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face immediate strikes on its power infrastructure. Iran responded by threatening to destroy oil facilities and other critical infrastructure across the Middle East "in an irreversible manner" if the US attacks its power plants. Traffic through the Hormuz strait has been heavily restricted since major US-Israeli strikes on 28 February triggered Iranian retaliatory attacks on ships and energy infrastructure across the Mideast Gulf, severely disrupting exports of crude, oil products, LNG, fertilizers and other commodities from the region. Trump was sparse on details on the negotiations, which he said would address nuclear enrichment and other security issues. If the talks succeed, the strait of Hormuz will be "jointly controlled", Trump said, by "maybe me — me and the ayatollah — whoever the next ayatollah is, and there will also be a very serious form of regime change". Earlier today, Iran's Defence Council warned that any attack on its coasts or islands would prompt it to lay naval mines across the Gulf, putting the wider region in a position similar to the strait of Hormuz "for a long time", according to state media. Tehran has also said the strait would only be open to vessels from "non-belligerent" countries co-ordinating passage with Iran. Foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said over the weekend that Iran was willing to discuss safe passage through Hormuz with Japan and other states that had not attacked Iran. By Nader Itayim, Andrey Telegin, James Keates and Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Iran media say pressure, not talks, led to US U‑turn

23/03/26
23/03/26

Iran media say pressure, not talks, led to US U‑turn

Dubai, 23 March (Argus) — Iranian state-linked media said today that US president Donald Trump postponed threatened strikes on Iranian power facilities under Iranian pressure, rejecting his claim that he ordered a five-day pause after "very good and productive" talks. State-linked news agency Fars, citing a security source, said there had been no direct or indirect communication with the US and that "Trump backed down after hearing that our targets would be all West Asian power plants". The remark refers to Iran's threats on Sunday to destroy oil facilities and other critical infrastructure across the Middle East "in an irreversible manner" if the US attacked its power plants. The Tasnim news agency, which has ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), also quoted a source denying talks and said Iran's "credible military threat" — and pressure on financial markets — drove the US decision. "With this kind of psychological warfare, neither the strait of Hormuz will return to its pre-war conditions, nor will there be peace in energy markets," the source said. Trump said earlier today that he has postponed threatened strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for five days. In a Truth Social post, he said Washington and Tehran had held "in-depth, detailed and constructive" discussions over the past two days aimed at achieving a "complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East". He said meetings would continue this week and that the pause depended on the "success of the ongoing meetings and discussions". Oil and gas prices fell after Trump's post. Front-month Ice Brent dropped to an intra-day low of $96/bl, down from $112.19/bl on 20 March. At the TTF hub, the front-month contract fell 17pc in eight minutes to just over €54/MWh at 11:10 GMT, from €62/MWh just after 11:00, before rebounding to €59/MWh at 11:22. Trump's move marks a sharp shift from his weekend ultimatum demanding Iran fully reopen the strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face immediate strikes on its power infrastructure. Traffic through Hormuz remains heavily restricted. Major US-Israeli strikes on 28 February triggered Iranian retaliatory attacks on ships and energy infrastructure across the Gulf, severely disrupting exports of crude, oil products, LNG, fertilizers and other commodities. By Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Trump orders pause in Iran strikes as talks open

23/03/26
23/03/26

Trump orders pause in Iran strikes as talks open

Dubai, 23 March (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said today he has ordered a five-day halt to planned military strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure, saying Washington and Tehran have held "very good and productive" conversations aimed at ending the war. In a Truth Social post, Trump said the two sides had engaged in "in-depth, detailed and constructive" discussions over the past two days on achieving a "complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East". He said further meetings would continue this week and that the pause in military action was conditional on the "success of the ongoing meetings and discussions". Front-month Ice Brent crude fell to as low as $96/bl in intra-day trading, down from the settlement price of $112.19/bl on 20 March. It is now trending at around $103/bl. European gas prices also tumbled in response to the post. The front-month contract at the benchmark TTF gas hub dropped by 17pc in the space of eight minutes, to just over €54/MWh at 11:10 GMT from €62/MWh just after 11:00 GMT. The price had climbed back up to €59/MWh by 11:22 GMT. Trump's announcement marks a sharp shift from his weekend ultimatum demanding Iran fully reopen the strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face immediate strikes on its power infrastructure. Iran responded by threatening to destroy oil facilities and other critical infrastructure across the Middle East "in an irreversible manner" if the US attacks its power plants. Traffic through the Hormuz strait has been heavily restricted since major US-Israeli strikes on 28 February triggered Iranian retaliatory attacks on ships and energy infrastructure across the Mideast Gulf, severely disrupting exports of crude, oil products, LNG, fertilizers and other commodities from the region. Earlier today, Iran's Defence Council warned that any attack on its coasts or islands would prompt it to lay naval mines across the Gulf, putting the wider region in a position similar to the strait of Hormuz "for a long time", according to state media. Tehran has also said the strait would only be open to vessels from "non-belligerent" countries co-ordinating passage with Iran. Foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said over the weekend that Iran was willing to discuss safe passage through Hormuz with Japan and other states that had not attacked Iran. By Nader Itayim, Andrey Telegin and James Keates Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Japan could consider additional oil reserves release

23/03/26
23/03/26

Japan could consider additional oil reserves release

Tokyo, 23 March (Argus) — The Japanese government could consider an additional oil reserves release, if the current oil supply disruption persists because of the US-Israel war with Iran, the Petroleum Association of Japan (PAJ) and the trade and industry ministry Meti said today. "While we will also see how alternative crude securing progresses, we are keeping in mind that we may release additional oil reserves, if necessary, even after the national reserves release," a Meti official said. "We are working on necessary preparations for that." Japan has already lowered the oil reserves mandate on domestic refiners from 70 days equivalent to 55 days until 15 April, which has allowed domestic refiners to use 15 days equivalent volumes from their oil reserves. Tokyo has also decided to release one-month equivalent of crude volumes from national oil reserves, aiming to cover the requirements for April. Total released volumes from national and private-held reserves amount to around 80mn bl, Meti said. For these first rounds of national oil stockpiles release, each domestic refiner has submitted which and how much crude they need from national oil reserves, and this process has almost been completed, PAJ president Shunichi Kito said on 23 March. "But if the situation in Iran may persist going forward, another release of oil reserves will become necessary." The government shares this view as well, a PAJ official added. An additional release could cover requirements for May onwards, Kito said. The Japanese government will decide the scale of released volumes, but it could be similar to the first round, he reiterated. Japan has a 241-days equivalent of oil reserves as of 20 March, according to preliminary data from Meti. The country has 89 days of private-held oil reserves, 146 days of national reserves and 6 days of joint stockpiles with oil-producing countries. Alternative sources Japanese refiners are exploring the possibility of securing alternative crude and sending vessels to alternative sources, Kito said, adding that North America is an option while Central and South America including Ecuador, Colombia as well as Mexico also have potential. Japan has a waiver from the US and EU to procure Russian crude only from the Sakhalin-2 project in the far east. Japan imports LNG from this project, which also produces crude oil as a by-product. Japanese refiners are not considering importing Russian crude other than from Sakhalin-2 for now, Kito said, while adding that Iranian crude is not under consideration either. By Kohei Yamamoto Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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