08:53 AM EDT, 06/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Oil prices eased off a four-month high early on Monday as Israel and Iran trade blows for a fourth day, but showed no appetite for disrupting shipments from the Persian Gulf.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was last seen down US$0.92 to US$72.06 per barrel, after touching US$77.49 in overnight trade, while August Brent crude was down US$0.91 to US$73.32 per barrel.

On Friday, Prices rose to the highest since February after Israel launched attacks on Iran in an attempt to disable that country's nuclear program, while Iran responded with missile strikes on Israel. While the strikes are continuing, Israel has avoided attacking much of Iran's oil infrastructure and shipments from the region, which supplies about 20% of the world's oil demand, have not been impeded, letting traders to return to focus on an oversupplied market.

"Iran needs its oil to get to water, and Israel cannot be a new agitator in inflation by actions that push oil prices into economically harming levels. Its greatest ally would not tolerate it. If this just turns out to be another bout of missile exchange that will fade because of depleted arsenals, markets will adjust and become bored with it and oil prices will echo such fade," PVM Oil Associates noted.

Still, concerns remain that Iran could block the Strait of Hormuz, the relatively narrow passage between it and Oman where the Persian Gulf empties into the Gulf of Oman, but the country has not yet shown an interest in interfering with shipping in the strait.

"We think "closure of the Strait" has emerged as something of a market straw man scenario. While it would be

exceedingly difficult to close the Strait for an extended period, Iran has previously targeted tankers and disrupted maritime traffic in the critical waterway and likely retains disruptive capabilities echoing concerns we had back in 2019," Helima Croft, Head of Global Commodity Strategy and MENA Research at RBC Capital Markets, said in a Sunday note.