Futures for at least 6 million barrels of Brent and WTI crude traded in the two minutes before US President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure would be delayed five days, sending oil prices down as much

2026-03-24

Futures for at least 6 million barrels of Brent and WTI crude traded in the two minutes before US President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure would be delayed five days, sending oil prices down as much as 14%. The pre-post trading, with a notional value of ~$650 million, far exceeding the usual 700,000-barrel volume for that time period. Traders faced heightened volatility amid the ongoing Middle East conflict and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.