Oil prices climb ahead of potential US-Iran talks
Oil prices gained on Tuesday after declining for four consecutive sessions as investors awaited developments on potential US-Iran talks at the United Nations General Assembly this week after more supplies emerged through the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend.
The Brent crude futures November contract rose $1.29, or 1.29%, to $101.63 a barrel at 0758 GMT. The WTI October contract, which expires on Tuesday, climbed 92 cents, or 0.96%, to $96.70 a barrel.
The more actively traded November contract was up 80 cents, or 0.87%, at $93.17 a barrel.
Tehran and Washington exchanged threats on Sunday, though US President Donald Trump said he would be open to meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is expected to be in New York this week for the UN meeting.
The rebound in crude suggests traders need fresh developments on supply risks or diplomatic efforts before pushing prices materially lower, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.
Over the weekend, Iran also conveyed its conditions to mediators for re-engaging in negotiations, Al Jazeera reported, citing Iran's security chief, Mohsen Rezaei.
Middle East tensions remained elevated after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said they attacked Riyadh and a Saudi Aramco facility in Yanbu and stepped up efforts to cut off Saudi-backed forces from the Red Sea coast.
Separately, an armed group closed valve seven on Libya's Sharara crude pipeline to Zawiya port on Monday, resulting in a significant decline in production at the Sharara oilfield, Libya's National Oil Corporation said in a statement.
Production at the field has fallen by around 200,000 barrels per day and is currently between 100,000 and 105,000 bpd, two engineers at the field told Reuters.
However, Saudi Aramco has increased exports through the Strait of Hormuz after attacks on its East-West Pipeline forced it to halt some shipments through Yanbu. Around 14 million barrels of its crude oil were loaded on seven supertankers inside the Gulf on Sunday, tanker tracking data showed.
"Oil exports from the Middle East have recovered but remain well below pre-conflict averages," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
"Combined with the end of SPR sales, this continues to point to a tight market. The price outlook will also depend on how much oil China buys in the coming months as its domestic inventories decline."
Saxo Bank's Hansen said he does not see much further downside in oil prices until there is increased supply through the Strait of Hormuz, particularly refined products, where the real crunch remains.
Diesel prices have rallied in Europe and the United States to record highs as wars in Iran and Ukraine sharply cut exports from some of the biggest producers such as Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
(Reporting by Anushree Mukherjee in London, Pranav Mathur in Bengaluru and Trixie Yap in Singapore; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus, Jamie Freed and Shri Navaratnam)
