Oil returned to below $80 after a sharp rise

On Tuesday, oil declined from the area of local highs, as investors began to take profits after a significant increase the day before.

Yesterday, Brent reached new highs since the end of August, breaking the $81 per barrel mark. The current quote of the asset is $79.20 per barrel. North American WTI crude is trading near $75.40 after yesterday's rise to $77.70 per barrel.

Last week, oil strengthened amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, where traders fear possible Israeli attacks on Iran's oil facilities. An additional risk arose in the Gulf of Mexico, where Chevron temporarily stopped work on its Blind Faith oil and gas platform due to the hurricane.

The API report on oil and petroleum products reserves in the United States is expected to be released today, preceding the official data of the Ministry of Energy. However, traders are now primarily focused on geopolitics, which has a greater impact on market sentiment.