Oil prices dropped below $80 a barrel Tuesday on optimism over the promised reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, easing inflation pressures on global economies even though traders are eyeing the risk of Iranian "service fees" on ships transiting the strait.
Oil hit a three-month low as Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark, dropped 4.0 percent to $79.87 a barrel, dipping below $80 for the first time since early March, before edging back up to $80.52.