US Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Tuesday said the US Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz, in what was understood to be the first such operation since the launch of the US-Israel war on Iran.Oil was already down on Tuesday, but dropped past 15% after the announcement of the US escort.
"The US Navy successfully escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz to ensure oil remains flowing to global markets," Wright posted on social media, as fighting raged in a war that has roiled oil markets and brought many shipments of the commodity to a standstill.
Nearly a fifth of global oil production passes through the key waterway, with Tehran on Tuesday vowing that not one liter of the commodity would be exported from the Gulf while the war is ongoing.
US President Donald Trump's administration has taken steps to try and reassure global markets since launching the war, offering reinsurance to shipping companies and the US Navy's services to escort tankers.
Wright's comments did not immediately specify when the escort operation took place and which ships were involved.
Crude prices have seen sharp fluctuations since the start of the war due to supply disruptions, jumping 30 percent on Monday to nearly $120 per barrel before retreating.
They continued to fall after comments by Trump on Monday hinting that the war may end soon, even as his defense secretary vowed a day later to carry out the "most intense day of strikes inside Iran."
The war has seen strikes carried out on oil depots in Iran and attacks on energy infrastructure in wealthy Gulf countries, previously seen as safe havens in a turbulent Middle East.
