Oil prices drop after Trump orders US forces to hold off on new strikes against Iran

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NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices fell sharply Sunday after President Donald Trump said he would order U.S. forces to hold off on new strikes against Iran, claiming that a deal to end the fighting in the Middle East was near.

A resolution to the conflict, which has lasted more than five months, could give oil shippers the ability to send vessels out of the Persian Gulf, where tankers of oil and other products have been trapped during the fighting.

The price of U.S. crude oil fell 5% to $80.79 per barrel Sunday night. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 5% to $83.87 per barrel.

Oil prices have been swinging widely since the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran in late February, pushing past $100 per barrel multiple times during the spring.

As the conflict continued, high oil prices seeped into the cost of gasoline, jet fuel and many other products that are delivered using diesel. Motorists have paid more at the pump and customers shelled out more for airfare due to higher jet fuel costs. In some countries, fuel supplies ran low, leading to rationing and sporadic closures of schools and government offices.

Meanwhile, oil and gas companies amassed huge profits in the spring due to the high oil, gasoline and diesel prices that resulted when petroleum shippers couldn't get through the critical Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that borders Iran, due to the fighting.

Prices for U.S. crude oil on Sunday night remained about 20% higher than before the conflict began.