Oil prices retreated on Monday, reversing earlier gains, after Iran’s foreign minister said there had been “major progress” toward ending the fighting in Lebanon during the first session of high-level talks with the United States.
Pakistan and Qatar, which are mediating the negotiations in Switzerland aimed at securing a lasting peace agreement, said in a joint statement that “encouraging progress” had been made after the session concluded.
Oil prices had edged higher earlier in the day amid uncertainty over the status of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that is a vital trading route for oil and natural gas that normally carries as much as one-fifth of the world’s oil supply. But optimism from the opening round of talks helped send oil prices lower.
Oil retreats.
The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, fell more than 2 percent to about $78 a barrel for September delivery, currently the most heavily traded contract.
West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark, fell over 2 percent to around $74 a barrel for August delivery, currently its most popular contract.
Stocks inch up.
The S&P 500 inched higher as stocks resumed trading in the United States on Monday. The Nasdaq Composite nudged lower.
Stocks in Asia, where countries import vast quantities of oil and gas, were mixed. Shares in Japan rose 1.6 percent and were up 2.8 percent in Taiwan, while Hong Kong stocks were down 0.7 percent.
In Europe, the Stoxx 600, a broad index that tracks the region’s largest companies, rose 0.4 percent.
Gasoline prices dip.
Gas prices fell again on Monday, to a national average of $3.93 a gallon, according to the AAA motor club. Still, the cost for drivers has increased by 32 percent since the war began.
Gas prices don’t move in lock step with crude, usually trailing increases or drops by a few days.
The average price of diesel fell to $5.01 on Monday, up 33 percent since the start of the war.
What they are saying: ‘The hard task of execution lies ahead.’
Despite uncertainties over the past few days — the election in Colombia, the resignation of Britain’s prime minister and peace talks with Iran — markets are reassured that the global economy is on track for steady growth, Geoff Yu, a BNY analyst, wrote in a research note. But “the hard task of execution lies ahead,” he added.
“The hope is for data to gradually reflect new realities and for asset allocation to start exploring opportunities that have opened up after several months of turbulence,” he wrote.
- Credits: The New York Times
