Shafaq News- Washington

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is expected to remain heavily disrupted through late May, pushing US gasoline prices up to $3.88, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday.

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz would “likely resume gradually” next month but would not return to pre-war levels until later this year. Before the conflict, the waterway carried roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies.

Around 10.5 million barrels per day of crude production were shut in during April across Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain amid disruptions tied to the ongoing war involving Iran, the United States, and Israel, the agency said.

Global oil inventories are expected to decline by an average of 8.5 million bpd during the second quarter, helping keep Brent crude prices near $106 per barrel through May and June.