Oil prices flat as Trump’s plan for Strait of Hormuz fails to calm market

Brent crude is largely unmoved by Trump’s announcement of the operation, dubbed ‘Project Freedom’.Oil prices are largely unmoved following United States President Donald Trump’s announcement that the US will guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz.Brent crude, the international benchmark, was essentially flat on Monday morning, as traders saw little hope of Trump’s plans resolving the biggest energy disruption in history.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4French left-wing’s Melenchon says he will run for president in 2027list 2 of 4Three dead in suspected hantavirus outbreak on Atlantic cruise shiplist 3 of 4Thousands in India’s Manipur mark three years since ethnic clashes beganlist 4 of 4Illegal ‘free party’ at French military site draws up to 40,000 raversend of listBrent futures for July stood at $108.11 as of 05:00 GMT, down 0.06 percent.Trump said on Sunday that the US would “help free up” vessels stranded in the Gulf from Monday, but offered few details on how the operation, dubbed “Project Freedom”, would work.Trump did not specify whether the plan would involve escorts by the US Navy, a proposal previously shot down by administration officials, who cited the need to make further preparations for such operations.US Central Command said in a later statement that it would “support” vessels seeking to transit the waterway, without making any reference to naval escorts.The command said that guided-missile destroyers, more than 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms, and 15,000 service members would be involved in supporting the effort.Senior Iranian officials have signalled that Tehran will not cooperate with Trump’s plan, casting further uncertainty over the fragile ceasefire in place between the sides since April 7.Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security Commission, on Sunday warned that any “American interference” in the strait would be considered a breach of their truce.On Monday, the United Kingdom’s military said it had received reports of a tanker being struck by “unknown projectiles” off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, hours after a bulk carrier reported being attacked by multiple small craft off Iran.