President Donald Trump predicted the conflict with Iran is “very far ahead of schedule” and predicting it will end “very soon,” assurances that prompted a modest retreat in oil prices, the first in more than two weeks.

Trump also said he was considering instructing U.S. forces to “take over” the Strait of Hurmuz, the narrow waterway currently being blocked by Iranian forces. Before the start of the conflict, around a fifth of the world’s oil and liquified natural gas reached markets through the strait. 

The president’s remarks helped to reassure oil markets, were prices pulled back from more than $100 per barrel on Monday to around $88 per barrel in early trading Tuesday. It was the first sustained decline in prices since Feb. 26, when hopes for successful negotiations pushed prices below $65 per barrel. 

In an effort to further reduce pressure on oil prices, Trump also agreed to ease the U.S.’s oil-related sanctions on Russian oil following a long phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Those sanctions were put in place in 2022 in retaliation for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Washington is also pushing for countries part of the Group of Seven nations to release parts of their strategic oil reserves.