Oil Surges as Hormuz Blocked, Ceasefire Falters

Brent crude for June delivery rose 2.2% to $96.86 a barrel, while WTI futures for May gained 3.3% to $97.51 a barrel. UAE oil giant ADNOC's CEO stated the Strait of Hormuz is shut and must reopen without conditions.

Analysts at Kpler confirmed the conditional two-week ceasefire is faltering, emphasizing unresolved deep supply challenges in the crude oil market. U.S. stock futures, including the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, fell by around 0.4% premarket, with the Nasdaq also down 0.4%.

Asian stocks largely declined, Japan's Nikkei falling 0.7% and South Korea's Kospi ending 1.6% lower. European blue-chip indexes were mixed; the German DAX slid 0.6% and the CAC 40 moved 0.3% lower, while London's FTSE 100 gained 0.2% due to rallying oil majors.

The dollar traded steady, DXY index flat at 99.109. U.S. Treasury yields were little changed, the two-year yield edging 0.2 basis points lower to 3.789% and the 10-year yield up 0.2 basis points at 4.291%.

Eurozone government bond yields rose, with the 10-year German Bund yield up 2.9 basis points to 2.968% and the 10-year French OAT yield up 4 basis points to 3.616%. Bitcoin fell 0.6% to $70,944, and gold prices eased 0.8% to $4,738.10 an ounce.

Federal Reserve minutes revealed officials expect slower inflation progress.