CRUDE WRAP: WTI (V6) SETTLES USD 0.29 HIGHER AT USD 91.30/BBL; BRENT (X6) SETTLES USD 0.11 LOWER AT USD 95.52/BBL

Sessions of this shape, where peace-talk headlines knock benchmarks lower and the move then fully retraces without a confirming catalyst, are a recurring feature of geopolitically driven crude: headline risk premium gets stripped on any hint of de-escalation and rebuilt when nothing concrete follows, leaving positioning rather than fundamentals doing the round trip. The Putin remarks fit the established pattern in which ceasefire or negotiation headlines compress the war premium embedded since the conflict began, with the recovery underscoring how thin the follow-through has tended to be absent an actual agreement. The macro overlay mattered more than usual, with dovish Fed commentary softening the dollar and easing financial conditions at the margin, a channel that has historically supported the complex independently of oil-specific news. The Oman report on the Strait of Hormuz is the tell worth filing away: joint fee proposals with Iran touch transit and insurance costs through the world's most sensitive chokepoint, and a quiet rejection keeps that tail risk dormant rather than resolved. The immediate calendar item is the weekend OPEC+ gathering, which source reporting has framed as a non-event on output policy, meaning the group stays in its monitoring posture and the supply side remains a story of compliance and spare capacity rather than fresh quotas. Novak's remarks affirming OPEC's continued influence are boilerplate of the kind Russian officials have issued repeatedly when coordination questions surface.