US-Iran Peace Talks Stall, Oil Prices Rise Globally

US-Iran Talks Collapse, Oil Prices Rise

Oil prices have increased following a collapse in talks between the US and Iran in Pakistan. The price of Brent crude rose by more than 2 percent on Sunday, reaching $106.99 as of 1:30 GMT. This increase occurred after hopes for a second round of ceasefire negotiations between Washington and Tehran were dashed over the weekend.

US President Donald Trump cancelled a planned trip to Pakistan by his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, following Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi’s departure from Islamabad before any direct engagement could take place. Araghchi then travelled to Russia’s Saint Petersburg for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other officials.

The collapse of the talks has led to increased uncertainty over a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran. Tehran’s threats against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz have reduced traffic to a trickle, paralysing a large portion of the world’s oil and natural gas supplies. According to maritime intelligence platform Windward, only 19 commercial vessels transited the strait on Saturday, compared to an average of 129 daily transits before the US and Israel launched their war on Iran in late February.

Stock markets in Asia opened higher on Monday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI gaining 0.9 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.

Source: Al Jazeera