WTI holds steady above $92.00 as Strait of Hormuz remains closed; bulls seem hesitant

• WTI sticks to positive bias for the second straight day, though it lacks bullish conviction.

• Tensions around the Strait of Hormuz continue to act as a tailwind for the black liquid.

• Hopes of Iran ceasefire stabilizing keep a lid on any meaningful gains for the commodity.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) – the benchmark US Crude Oil price – trades with a mild positive bias during the Asian session on Friday, though it lacks bullish conviction amid hopes of Iran ceasefire stabilizing. The commodity is currently placed just above the $92.00 mark, up around 0.25% for the day.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he has issued an instruction to start direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible, addressing a key point of contention in the fragile US-Iran ceasefire and capping Crude Oil prices. That said, Netanyahu insisted that Israel’s attacks across the country targeting Hezbollah would continue. Furthermore, tensions around the Strait of Hormuz continue to act as a tailwind for Crude Oil prices.

In fact, Iran halted shipping traffic through the strategic waterway in response to brutal Israeli attacks on Lebanon. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump accused Iran of doing a very poor job of handling oil through the Strait of Hormuz, and that it was not the agreement they had. Trump also warned of renewed strikes if the Iran deal fails, suggesting that escalation risks remain on the table, which might continue to support Crude Oil prices.

The market attention now shifts to the release of the latest US consumer inflation figures, which might influence expectations about the Federal Reserve's (Fed) policy path and drive the US Dollar (USD). This, in turn, could provide some impetus to the USD-denominated commodity, though the focus remains glued to geopolitical developments. Nevertheless, Crude Oil prices remain on track to register heavy weekly losses.