Oil prices are falling again on Tuesday, extending losses after crude plunged nearly 9% in the previous session, as US President Donald Trump signalled that Washington and Tehran are committed to ending the Middle East conflict. Over the weekend, the two sides agreed to halt a two-week exchange of strikes that had driven crude above $100 a barrel.
Brent crude — the European benchmark — was down 2.23% at $86.06 a barrel in morning trading, a day after posting its worst session in more than three months. West Texas Intermediate, the US reference grade, fell 1.63% to $80.70 a barrel. Natural gas traded in Amsterdam bucked the trend, rising 0.31% to €56.85 per megawatt-hour.
According to online publication Axios, President Trump decided to suspend the strikes to give peace negotiations a fresh opportunity. He said there was a ‘good chance’ talks would advance, though he offered few details on the next steps. Trump is expected to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on Tuesday to discuss Iran.
Meanwhile, traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains nearly suspended, although some vessels with their location transponders switched off have managed to transit the waterway. According to data from commodity analytics firm Kpler, cited by Bloomberg, only four ships passed through on Monday. The disruption is compounded by ongoing turmoil in the Red Sea, where shipping traffic has fallen to multi-month lows following a maritime blockade imposed by the Houthis.
‘I don’t believe the situation in the Middle East is resolved,’ said Scott Shelton, an energy specialist at TP ICAP Group. For that to happen, he argued, there needs to be ‘concrete evidence that oil is flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, which in my opinion has not yet occurred.’
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/07/28/commodities-3/petroleo-cai-mais-de-2-e-aproxima-se-dos-85-dolares/
