-- Crude oil prices declined on Tuesday amid a potential resumption of talks between the U.S. and Iran to end the war, easing heightened supply concerns.
Brent crude at last look lost 1.1% to US$98.28/barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2.2% to $96.92/barrel. Supply concerns, however, remain due to attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. military said its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would extend east to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, and Iran responded by threatening to target ports in nations bordering the Gulf, the report said.
Negotiating teams from the U.S. and Iran could return to Islamabad later this week, Reuters reported, citing five unnamed sources.
"In case talks between the adversaries fail to bear fruit, even revisiting the March highs cannot be ruled out as the decline in global oil inventories might spill into the third quarter and beyond," Reuters quoted PVM Oil Associates analyst Tamas Varga as saying.