Thousands of oil contracts -- a far higher volume than normal -- were traded 15 minutes before US President Donald Trump pledged to halt strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, sending prices tumbling, data showed on Tuesday.
Between 1049 GMT and 1050 GMT, 734 oil contracts changed hands, and in the next minute that number surged to 2,168 -- 16 times higher than the average observed through the day up to that time.
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