Oil jumps as US-Iran deal hopes fade, Strategic Petroleum Reserve falls below 300 million barrels

Oil jumps as US-Iran deal hopes fade, Strategic Petroleum Reserve falls below 300 million barrels Ines Ferré · Senior Business Reporter Mon, August 10, 2026 at 7:22 PM GMT+2 1 min read CL=F BZ=F Oil prices jumped on Monday as hopes for a Washington-Tehran deal over the Strait of Hormuz faded and the US's Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell below 300 million barrels, hovering at its lowest level since the 1980s. The SPR fell by 6. 1 million barrels in August, reaching its lowest point since 1983, with inventories at 298.

7 million barrels, according to data from the Department of Energy . Read more:  What's the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and can it help lower gas prices? The US, like other countries, has been releasing stored crude to make up for supply disruptions sparked by the war in the Middle East, with the Trump administration ordering the release of 172 million barrels in March to steady global markets.

On Monday, futures on Brent crude ( BZ=F ), the international benchmark, and US benchmark WTI crude ( CL=F ) rose by more than 4% to re-top $85 per barrel and $80 a barrel, respectively. The jump in prices came after President Trump signaled to Axios on Sunday that the US is "low-keying" it with Iran as it seeks to open up more shipments through the critical oil chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz. "We are only semi-negotiating with them," said Trump.

" We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money. " Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre .