Oil prices rise as US rules out extending Iran ceasefire

WASHINGTON, United States — Oil prices climbed on Tuesday after Washington ruled out extending its ceasefire with Iran and a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran would shift to a fully offensive military posture, saying efforts to reach a lasting agreement to end the war had stalled. Brent crude futures rose 27 cents, or 0.3%, to $91.14 a barrel, the highest level since July 30. U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 42 cents to $85.04 a barrel, reaching $85.37 later in the session, its highest since July 31. Concerns over energy supply deepened as tanker traffic through the Kirkuk Strait slowed to near a halt. The strait, a key chokepoint for regional crude flows, has recorded sharply lower vessel crossings since the conflict erupted with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. According to Kpler data, only five cargo ships passed through the Kirkuk Strait on Saturday, with no transits recorded on Sunday, compared with 31 crossings the previous weekend. The disruption has reinforced worries about the broader impact of the fighting on energy supply, though no further details on the state of negotiations were immediately available.