[DigitalToday reporter Jinju Hong (홍진주)] Ethereum (ETH) has fallen nearly 10 percent over the past week, giving up most of its gains in May. The market is seeing a jump in international oil prices, driven by Middle East geopolitical risks, as weighing on Ethereum.

On May 18 (all times local), blockchain outlet BeInCrypto reported that Ethereum fell as low as $2,097 intraday on May 17 on Binance. That was the lowest level since April 7. Ethereum was trading near $2,116, down about 2.88 percent over 24 hours.

A surge in international oil prices was cited as a key factor behind the recent weakness. Bitmine Chairman Tom Lee said on X, formerly Twitter, "If one is wondering why Ethereum is under selling pressure, to me, rising oil prices is the biggest headwind," adding, "ETH inverse correlation to oil is the highest ever."

Brent crude traded near $111 a barrel on the day. It has risen about 16.4 percent over the past month. The market is viewing heightened tensions between the United States and Iran and concerns about a closure of the Strait of Hormuz as factors fueling the rise in oil prices.

Against that backdrop, an interpretation is emerging that Ethereum's weakness is being driven more by macroeconomic variables than by internal crypto issues. As risk assets broadly come under pressure from a spike in energy prices and inflation worries, Ethereum has not avoided the impact of worsening investor sentiment.

Lee did not view the recent drop as long-term structural weakness. He said rising oil prices are weighing on the market in the short term, but Ethereum could rebound if oil prices stabilise. He also described the recent pullback as "short term tactical noise."

He stayed optimistic on the long-term outlook. Lee pointed to tokenisation and agentic AI as key variables that will shape Ethereum in 2026. He said on-chain migration of traditional financial assets and an expansion of AI-based services could lift demand for the Ethereum network.

Earlier this month, he also forecast that Ethereum could reach $9,000 to $12,000 by the end of the year. He argued that long-term growth drivers remain valid regardless of short-term price adjustments.

The market is focusing on the likelihood that international oil price moves will act as a key variable in whether Ethereum stages a short-term rebound. It is also watching whether growth in the tokenisation market and AI-related demand will translate into expansion of the Ethereum ecosystem.

1/ If one is wondering why Ethereum $ETH has been under selling pressure: - to me, rising oil prices is the biggest headwind - ETH inverse correlation to oil is the highest ever pic.twitter.com/G5Uw0wbtJP