Crude futures recorded a 6% weekly decline as a $7 billion CFTC investigation into irregular paper-market shorts overshadowed renewed US-Iranian air strikes and impending summer gasoline shortages.
Crude futures settled lower as Saudi-backed US naval escorts prepared to resume, though post-settlement kinetic explosions and a 400,000-barrel-per-day Iranian upstream shut-in capped significant paper losses.
Despite the headline build in expectations gap, market reaction remains relatively contained, with the draw largely viewed as export-driven rather than a reflection of stronger domestic demand, according to analysts.