U.S. crude-sale waiver on Iranian oil formally expires

The U.S. Treasury's temporary authorization allowing sales of Iranian crude, previously running to August 21, lapsed as scheduled at 12:01 a.m. EDT on July 17, with no further transactions permitted. The cutoff had been moved up earlier in July as the ceasefire deteriorated.

Why this matters. The waiver's expiration removes the last sanctions carve-out from the June MOU, closing off the legal route for Iranian oil sales right as physical shipping through Hormuz is already down sharply.