The Japanese yen slid to a two-week low against the US dollar on Wednesday, extending a rough start to the week as investors piled into the American currency ahead of key US inflation data. The dollar climbed to ¥159.46, its highest level since July 31, while the standoff over the Strait of Hormuz kept safe-haven demand for the greenback alive.
Oil prices moved higher Monday after Iran laid out a demanding list of conditions it says must be satisfied before it will reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which roughly a fifth of the world's seaborne oil supply passes. Brent crude traded near $83 to $84 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate held close to $78. Iranian officials made clear that restoring normal shipping through the strait would require the United States to end its blockade of Iranian ports, lift broad economic sanctions, unfreeze Iranian assets held abroad, and pay compensation for damages Tehran attributes to American military and economic pressure. The demands represent a sharp escalation from Iran and raise serious questions about how quickly either side can build on a memorandum of understanding reached in June, which had briefly suggested a diplomatic path forward was within reach.