Crude oil prices fall over 1% after progress in US-Iran talks, Russia-Ukraine truce

Crude oil prices declined more than 1% at Monday’s open in Asia as nuclear talks between the United States and Iran progressed, easing supply concerns.

Brent crude futures slipped 1.50%, to $66.94 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.52% to $63.70 a barrel.

 Trading volumes in crude futures may be lower than usual in Monday’s session, with some countries observing holidays to mark Easter.

Crude oil prices have fallen sharply this month, at one point hitting a four-year low, amid growing investor concerns that escalating trade tensions between the United States and its major trading partners, including China, will weaken global crude demand. 

The downturn has been further exacerbated by OPEC’s decision to ramp up production more quickly than anticipated, reigniting fears of an oversupply in the market.

US-Iran Talks

US and Iran agreed on Saturday to begin drawing up a framework for a potential nuclear deal, Iran’s foreign minister said, after talks that a US official described as yielding “very good progress”, Reuters reported.

The discussions, which lasted more than three hours, will resume Wednesday in Oman, and have the potential to affect Iranian crude supplies.

Russia-Ukraine Truce

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed a 30-day suspension of long-range drone and missile strikes targeting civilian infrastructure. The proposal follows the recent Easter ceasefire, during which Russian forces reportedly refrained from conducting air strikes but committed over 2,000 other violations.

President Zelenskyy accused Russian forces of breaching the Easter truce announced by President Vladimir Putin. In a statement posted on Telegram, Zelenskyy said, “The nature of Ukrainian actions will continue to be mirrored: we will respond to silence with silence, our strikes will be to protect against Russian strikes”.

(With inputs from Agencies)

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