Hong Kong (AFP) – Oil prices fell on Wednesday after President Donald Trump said US and Iranian representatives had met for “very good” talks at the United Nations. International benchmark Brent crude and main US contract West Texas Intermediate were below the symbolic $100 mark that has been repeatedly breached since the Middle East war began in February. Brent hit $99.30 and WTI lowered to $89.93 per barrel in afternoon Asian trading.
Trump told reporters the three-hour US-Iran meeting was “very good”, “very productive” and “they have another one scheduled in the very near future”. The US leader’s statements came just hours after he delivered a bellicose address to the UN, saying he faced a “big decision” on whether to make a deal with Iran or “annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly”. Nearly seven months after US-Israeli strikes triggered war, the foes are at an impasse, with Iran keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed and the United States enforcing a counter-blockade of Iranian ports. Conflict between Saudi-backed government forces and the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen has enveloped the kingdom, squeezing energy exports from the Red Sea.
“The three-hour US-Iran meeting matters because it shifts the market from pure escalation pricing toward a genuine diplomatic process, even if a final deal still looks distant,” said Stephen Innes at Quintex Intel. Trump has pledged that oil would come down “as soon as” the United States wins the war. The dip in oil prices came as the world’s biggest crude exporter Saudi Arabia reportedly rebooted operations along its East-West Pipeline — a crucial oil export route shut down by drone attacks. The kingdom is aiming to resume exports later this week, Bloomberg quoted a source as saying. But while Saudi oil giant Aramco reportedly told Asian refiners they could soon pick up crude from the Red Sea port of Yanbu, the firm told their European counterparts they will not be allocated oil in October, Bloomberg said.
– AI Buzz –
Asian markets were mixed, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closing one percent down, shrugging off an announcement by Chinese tech giant Alibaba that it would expand its overseas data centres. The firm, one of the frontrunners in China’s AI industry, said the move would target markets across Europe and the Middle East. Shanghai closed 0.4 percent down. Alibaba’s announcement follows a renewed burst of confidence in artificial intelligence this week, with Anthropic and OpenAI releasing new, cheaper AI models within hours of each other. Anthropic’s release comes a few weeks before its expected stock market debut. OpenAI has delayed its IPO plans until next year. South Korea’s tech-rich Kospi and Taiwan’s Taiex index — home to chipmaking titan TSMC — were up 0.9 percent and 0.8 percent respectively.
Europe posted gains. Traders are also looking to Washington ahead of a summit on Thursday between Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping that is expected to focus on trade between the world’s two biggest economies. A simmering US-China trade war is a key concern, as both sides have maintained a tariff truce for nearly a year but have yet to secure a lasting agreement. “But the higher impact issue will be the war in the Middle East and any support the US can extract from China to use its leverage to sway the Iranians,” said Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com.
– Key Figures at Around 0815 GMT –
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.7 percent at $89.93 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: FLAT at $99.30 per barrel
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1 percent at 24,834.12 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 3,936.52 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: closed for a holiday
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 10,753.01
Dollar/yen: UP at 157.83 from 157.37 on Tuesday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1411 from $1.1451
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3295 from $1.3344
Euro/pound: UP at 85.83 pence from 85.81 pence
© 2024 AFP
