Oil Edges Down After Biggest Gain in a Month on US-Iran Standoff

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(Bloomberg) — Oil ticked lower after its biggest gain in about a month, as uncertainty about the state of US-Iran peace talks raised the risk that energy flows from the Persian Gulf could be curtailed for longer.

Financial Post

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Brent for August delivery traded near $94 a barrel after adding 4.2% in the previous session, while West Texas Intermediate was around $91. Prices surged Monday on a report that Tehran was halting talks with Washington in protest against Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, before paring gains after President Donald Trump said negotiations were continuing. 

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The US leader said a memorandum of understanding with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz could happen over the next week, according to a telephone conversation he had with ABC News. Washington still had “to get a few more points” before a deal, he said.

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The lack of clarity over the potential extension of the current ceasefire — and the future of flows through the Strait of Hormuz — has buffeted oil prices, which fell last month on optimism a deal could be reached. The report by Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency also said that Tehran and its regional proxies have placed on their agenda the complete closure of Hormuz, as well as the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea — a crucial alternative for oil exports.

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“As long as flows through Hormuz have not fully normalized and the US–Iran negotiation process remains uncertain, oil prices are likely to stay elevated and volatile,” said Linh Tran, a market analyst at XS.com in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

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Adding to the confusion, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered differing accounts of a call about the fighting in Lebanon. A US-brokered ceasefire between Tel Aviv and Iran-backed Hezbollah should be extended from Beirut to include the entirety of Lebanese territories, with more negotiations taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Lebanese presidency said in a post.

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The primary focus for oil market remains the vital Strait of Hormuz, which handled about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas in peacetime. Visible commercial traffic through the waterway remains constrained as the renewed strains in US-Iran diplomacy add to shipping uncertainty.

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—With assistance from Mia Gindis.

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