09:04 AM EDT, 03/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Oil prices fell early Monday, retreating from overnight highs even after U.S. President Trump threatened further attacks on Iran's Kharg Island, the hub for the country's oil exports, while calling for allies to send naval forces to defend shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil for April delivery was last seen down $2.87 to US$95.84 per barrel, while May Brent oil was down $0.69 to US$102.45.

Oil has climbed 47% in the two weeks since the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran. Iran responded by closing the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow chokepoint for oil and gas exports from the Persian Gulf, which supplies about 20% of daily demand, and struck at neighbors in the region.

International Energy Agency members last week agreed to release 400-million barrels of strategic reserves to help ease the supply shortages. But release of the supply is expected to involve about two-million barrels per day, well less than the supply shortages caused by the closure of the Strait.

"Supply tightness remains the dominant theme, with the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz posing the biggest threat to global energy flows. Only a reopening of the chokepoint is likely to prevent a deeper disruption to supplies of LNG, crude oil, refined fuel products, aluminium and other commodities," Saxo Bank noted.

No end to the conflict is yet in sight, as the U.S. over the weekend attacked military targets on Kharg Island, which handles the bulk of Iran's oil exports, and threatened to seize oil facilities there to force concessions from Iran.

"A US attack on military installations on Saturday may be indicative of the US and/or Israel considering an intervention to take over the island. A takeover of Iran's key oil facilities could be an attempt to coerce the Iranian regime into a deal to acquiesce to US demands," Erik Meyersson, chief EM strategist at SEB Research, noted.

President Trump over the weekend posted a call for allies and China to provide naval forces to help escort tankers through the Strait, but none have yet responded positively to his request. The Wall Street Journal reported the U.S. Administration expects this week to announce that "multiple countries" have agreed to back the effort, but none have publicly said they will yet.