Oil prices tumble as a pause in tit-for-tat strikes between the US and Iran boost market hopes for a return to their ceasefire and negotiations on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
After 13 days of attacks on sites in the Islamic Republic, the United States held fire over the weekend and Donald Trump’s UN envoy said the US president was “giving talks some space.”
Tehran in turn said it would stop its retaliatory attacks on regional neighbors, handing Gulf shipping and the oil industry a respite.
The two countries resumed hostilities this month, breaking a fragile truce, after Iran attacked ships passing through Omani waters in the Strait of Hormuz, sparking a pattern of escalation. Crude prices soared on the flare-up, with Brent breaking back above $100 a barrel last week for the first time since May. News that shipping continued in the Red Sea helped investors pare the gains Friday.
However, Trump’s decision to hold off on more strikes and Iran’s claims Sunday that it had made progress in talks with Oman on management of the Strait of Hormuz provided some much-needed relief.
Oil contracts are sinking today, with Brent shedding more than seven percent at one point to briefly drop back below $90.
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