BlockBeats News, May 21st, Tom Lee stated in a post that the current Ethereum selling pressure mainly comes from the rise in oil prices. In response to the just-released Federal Reserve minutes for April, he stated that if inflation remains above 2%, the Fed may need to consider "policy tightening."

Tom Lee believes that ETH is showing the highest historical negative correlation with oil prices. High oil prices boost inflation expectations, increase the probability of Fed rate hikes, tighten monetary liquidity, and suppress crypto assets. Since the outbreak of the Iran war, oil price volatility has been highly synchronized with the Fed's 2026 rate hike/cut expectations. The resolution of the war will directly affect oil prices and may alleviate the macro pressure on ETH.