Traders reportedly placed bets worth $430 million on a decrease in crude oil prices, just 15 minutes before President Donald Trump announced an extension of the ceasefire with Iran on Tuesday.
This marks the fourth instance of large, well-timed directional oil bets placed just ahead of major Iran war developments, with April wagers totaling about $2.1 billion, Reuters reported on Wednesday. Previously, in March, traders placed bets amounting to more than $500 million in the oil market minutes before a significant Truth Social post by Trump concerning “productive” Iran talks.
Between 19:54 and 19:56 GMT on Tuesday, traders sold 4,260 lots of oil, worth a total of $430 million, based on the prevailing Brent futures price, reported the publication, citing LSEG data. Trump announced the indefinite ceasefire extension at 20:10 GMT. These trades occurred during post-settlement hours, a period when trading volumes are typically very low.
At 5:16 am ET, Brent crude oil was trading 2.62% higher at $104.60 per barrel.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and CME Group did not immediately respond to Benzinga‘s request for comments.
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