Brent gains as Iran questions nuclear deal with the US

The front-month ICE Brent contract has gained $0.74/bbl on the day from Friday, to trade at $64.99/bbl at 09.00 GMT.

IMAGE: Oil barrels. Getty Images

Upward pressure:

Brent crude’s price gained over the weekend after Iran downplayed the likelihood of a near-term nuclear deal with the US.

On Friday, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said that Tehran had not received any formal proposal from the US. “Iran has not received any written proposal from the United States, whether directly or indirectly,” he said on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

The country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, lashed out at US President Donald Trump, accusing him of dishonesty and power abuse, Bloomberg reported.

If finalised, the deal could see the US lifting sanctions on Iranian oil. “Crude oil rebounded as Iran cast doubt on an imminent nuclear deal with the US,” ANZ Bank senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes remarked.

“Iran’s President Pezeshkian said that Tehran won’t abandon its pursuit of civilian nuclear energy under any circumstance,” he added.

Downward pressure:

Oil felt some downward pressure as market investors shifted focus to a highly anticipated call scheduled between US President Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to discuss the war between Russia and Ukraine.

“The market will be on the lookout for any signs of potential de-escalation,” two analysts from ING Bank said.

By Aparupa Mazumder

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