Oil Prices Tumble as Traders Price In a Strait of Hormuz Breakthrough

September WTI crude oil futures are trading at $78.08 early Friday, down $8.72, or 10.05%, for the week. The market opened at $80.10, traded as high as $82.33, and fell to $74.24. With Friday’s session still ahead, the weekly result is not final. But the message from the price action is clear. Traders sold the possibility that diplomacy could restore crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz, then bought back part of the break when it became clear that the shipping problem had not been solved. The early selloff was driven by optimism surrounding…