Oil prices top $80 on US-Iran talks cancellation

Oil prices rose above $80 per barrel on Friday as investors assessed renewed geopolitical risks following the cancellation of planned US-Iran talks and fresh Israeli attacks in Lebanon, even as shipping conditions in the Strait of Hormuz showed signs of improvement, News.Az reports, citing Anadolu.

Brent crude futures traded around $80.11 per barrel as of 0700 GMT.

Prices gained support after Switzerland confirmed that planned US-Iran talks would not take place as scheduled. The Swiss Foreign Ministry said the discussions planned at Burgenstock were canceled after the White House announced that US Vice President JD Vance would not depart for Switzerland, as logistical details for expected technical talks with Iran remained unresolved.

The cancellation has raised concerns about the next stage of diplomacy following the US-Iran interim peace agreement, which had ended a prolonged conflict that caused the largest recorded supply disruption.

Separately, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli bombing and artillery strikes on Nabatieh city and nearby towns killed at least 24 people and injured several others early on Friday.

Despite these renewed risks, investors also focused on signs of stabilisation in energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

The US Central Command said it had lifted restrictions on traffic to and from Iranian ports and coastal waters, while the Joint Maritime Information Center advised vessels transiting the strait to use a route closer to Oman’s coastline to reduce the risk of mines.

Tankers carrying previously stranded crude have begun exiting the waterway, and Kuwait has said it will begin increasing production.

The improved shipping outlook has limited oil’s gains, with prices erasing nearly all increases recorded since the Middle East conflict began in late February and remaining on track for a sharp weekly decline.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev