Oil tumbles more than 7% as US-Iran deal hopes build
What's new: Brent settled at $104.77 and WTI at $96.46 after Qatar-mediated talks raised hopes of easing the Strait of Hormuz crisis.
Oil prices fell sharply Monday as signs of progress in indirect US-Iran talks lifted hopes that the eight-month conflict could ease and crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz could stabilize. Brent crude dropped $8.66, or 7.63%, to settle at $104.77 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate fell $7.66, or 7.36%, to $96.46. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the government had authority to pursue peace talks, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described consultations as intensive, with Qatar and Pakistan helping mediate. President Donald Trump wrote that a deal with Tehran “could happen.” The sell-off followed weeks of price spikes driven by tanker attacks and fears of wider supply disruption across the Gulf.