Middle East war: Oil gains as Trump dismisses Iran deal
Brent crude has risen above $95/bbl again after US President Donald Trump said the US does not need a peace deal with Iran.
IMAGE: Flags of Iran and the US. Getty Images
Trump declared that Washington does not need a deal with Tehran, reversing his tone from earlier this week when he indicated the eight-month conflict was winding down.
“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed,” Trump wrote on social media platform Truth Social yesterday, adding that his country had control of Iran’s money as well as the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent has risen since the post. A day earlier, SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes had warned that US military gains were not translating into a settlement.
“Eight months into the Iran war, Washington has demonstrated an extraordinary ability to destroy targets without necessarily achieving the political outcome it wants,” Innes wrote.
Trump’s sudden shift in rhetoric came shortly after Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, dismissed claims that talks with Washington are underway.
Iran will not move any of its enriched nuclear material out of the country, Rezaei told Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen TV. Trump said in April and May that Iran’s enriched uranium must be removed or destroyed.
“And somewhere in the middle sits the global oil market, desperately trying to decide whether to price the end of a war or the beginning of its next chapter,” Innes added.
Commercial vessels still face threat
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency reported another incident involving a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel was struck by an unknown projectile in the engine room, about 14 nautical miles (NM) northwest of Ra’s al Khaymah, UAE, the UKMTO said.
As many as 37 vessels came under attack in the Strait of Hormuz in October, Reuters reported.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO), which counts only incidents it has confirmed, recorded 35 across the wider Middle East in October, 18 of them in the strait. It has confirmed 134 incidents involving ships in the region since the US-Iran war began.
Some 10 vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz yesterday, six inbound and four outbound, according to market intelligence provider Windward. Eight of these vessels moved in dark mode. An average of 129 vessels/day crossed the strait in February, before the war started, according to UN Trade and Development.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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