Update: Oil Steady at Prewar Levels as Ships Continue to Moving Through Strait of Hormuz

(Updates prices in the second paragraph.) Oil prices were mostly steady midafternoon Friday, hovering near four-month lows on expectations that the U.S. and Iran will reach a peace agreement and continue to free up ships trapped in the Persian Gulf. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for August delivery was last seen up $0.09 to $68.78 per barrel in light electronic trading, with US markets closed ahead of the July 4 Independence Day holiday. September Brent crude was up 0.5% at $72.12. The decline comes as a ceasefire agreement reached last month between Iran and the U.S. continues to hold, while the two sides hold peace talks in Qatar. The ceasefire is allowing ships trapped within the Persian Gulf since the Feb. 28 start to the war to begin transiting the Strait of Hormuz, ending the largest-ever supply shock. Hormuzstraitmonitor.com reported 27 ships moved through the Strait in the past day, including tankers carrying 3.3-million barrels of oil, easing prices that rose to four-month highs during the conflict. "Brent trades near unchanged on the week, having returned to pre-war levels, with support emerging ahead of USD 70. This may signal that the ongoing recovery in.