Oil prices tumbled on Monday as the US and Iran held off on strikes for the third day in a row, raising hopes that a diplomatic solution might emerge even as the physical oil market remains fundamentally tight. Those on US benchmark WTI crude (CL=F) shed roughly 5.8% to trade near $84. As the US and Iran had engaged in more than 10 days straight of military engagement, trading strikes that destroyed infrastructure and killed several US service members, oil prices had steadily ticked back up toward their wartime high levels. Attacks in the Red Sea appeared to slow over the weekend, however, allowing oil markets a bit more breathing room. In the Strait of Hormuz, the critical chokepoint at the center of the US-Iran war, traffic has also remained subdued, with only 13 crossings observed over the weekend, roughly 95% below prewar averages, per Clarksons.