America’s benchmark oil contract West Texas Intermediate (WTI) surged late on Sunday after Iran accused the US of having broken a ceasefire in place since early April.
WTI crude was trading up 7.5% at $90.17 per barrel by 8pm ET, while international oil benchmark Brent North Sea crude gained 6.%5 to $96.27 per barrel.
Iran’s military vowed to respond after the destroyer USS Spruance on Sunday fired on an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman that tried to evade the US naval blockade. The strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas, has been virtually closed since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran.
US military seized Iranian-flagged container ship, Trump says
The US military took custody of an Iranian-flagged container ship that attempted to get past an American blockade near the strait of Hormuz, Donald Trump announced on Sunday.
Tehran has ‘no plans to participate’ in talks with US, state media reports
Tehran is not currently planning to take part in new talks with the US, Iran state media reported on Sunday evening, hours after Donald Trump said he was dispatching negotiators to Islamabad.
Energy secretary says gas prices might not drop back under $3 a gallon until 2027
Asked by Jake Tapper, the CNN State of the Union host, when he thought “it’s realistic for Americans to expect the gas will go back to under $3 a gallon”, Chris Wright replied: “I don’t know. That could happen later this year. That might not happen until next year.”
Republican senator criticizes Trump’s ‘holy war’ with Pope Leo
Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana, a long supporter of Trump and the ultraconservative Maga movement, condemned the president’s attacks on the pope during a Fox News interview on Saturday.
“I love the president like a taco,” said Kennedy, using an odd turn of phrase. He added: “I don’t always agree with him, but I think he wants a better world. But I don’t agree with him about this new holy war with the pope.”
Pope Leo says he was not ‘trying to debate’ Trump over US attack on Iran
Pope Leo XIV said on Saturday that it was “not in my interest at all” to debate the US president, Donald Trump, about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the gospel message of peace.
Intemperate Trump brings chaos and confusion to Iran talks
Analysis: Donald Trump’s decision to send US officials to Islamabad for further talks on Monday with Iran just 24 hours after Iran once again closed the strait of Hormuz will signal to Tehran that the strategic waterway remains a bargaining asset beyond parallel.
What else happened today:
At least eight children were killed and two adults were wounded in a mass shooting in the Louisiana city of Shreveport in what police called a “domestic violence incident”. A police department spokesperson said that the suspect killed seven of his own children and wounded their mother, as well as killing another child.
Virginia’s upcoming redistricting vote seems to have divided voters in the swing state, five months after they overwhelmingly elected a Democratic governor, Abigail Spanberger, and gave her allies a sizable majority in the legislature’s lower house.
A trail of damaged homes and buildings dotted a wide swath of the US over the weekend after a burst of destructive winds and reported tornadoes tore off roofs, uprooted trees and rendered rural roads impassable with debris.
Catching up? Here’s what happened on 18 April.
