Oil prices fall as peace hopes offset fears of growing Middle East conflict

30/10/2026 02:47 AST

Oil prices ?fell on Thursday, paring gains made a day earlier, as hopes for peace talks took the edge ?off renewed concerns over Middle East supply disruptions from escalating regional conflict. Brent crude futures declined $1.22, or 1.1 percent, to $114.10 a barrel at 06:51 a.m. Saudi. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were down $1.33, or 1.3 percent, at $101.45. Brent rose 1.3 percent and WTI gained 3 percent on Wednesday. US Vice President JD Vance sought to ?revive peace negotiations by sending a letter to Iranian Security Council chief Mohsen Rezaei, the Wall Street Journal said ?on Wednesday, citing US officials and people familiar with the matter. "Selling pressure is prevailing amid expectations ?that peace talks may resume," said Yuki Takashima, an economist at Nomura Securities. "However, the decline remains limited." This was due to ?concerns over intensified attacks by the Houthis and fears the US may launch an attack on Iran following its midterm elections ?set for Nov. 3. The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Houthis said it destroyed a ballistic missile fired by the group towards the Kingdom's eastern region early on Thursday, as hostilities between the two sides show no signs of abating. The Houthis attacked Aden airport on Wednesday, Yemeni government forces said. Qatari mediators have presented Iran ?with a new ?draft deal to end the war with the US and Israel, an official briefed on the negotiations said, but a senior Iranian official dismissed it as unacceptable ideas that did not amount to an offer. Iran's foreign minister said on Wednesday Tehran continued to give diplomacy a chance to succeed and flagged the possibility of completing its seven-day plan in less than a week ?if adopted. Some expectations of rising ?crude and diesel production from ?Russia weighed further on market sentiment and prices. "Since the October 15 strike on the Ryazan refinery, there have been no further confirmed attacks on Russian refining infrastructure," JPMorgan analysts said in ?a note last night. "The silence has allowed Russian refinery runs to rebound by 350 kbd ?last week to ?4 mbd." "Higher runs would also allow Russia to lift crude production by a broadly comparable amount, reversing part of the recent decline that pushed output to 8.4 mbd - its lowest level since 2003 ... (but) higher crude production would not necessarily translate into higher crude exports." The US ?Energy Information ?Administration said on Wednesday that energy firms pulled 1.9 million barrels of ?crude from storage during the week ended Oct. 23, versus analysts' forecast of a 15,000-barrel build in a Reuters poll. But gasoline stockpiles rose by 3.9 million ?barrels, against analysts' expectations for a draw of 0.9 million barrels.

Reuters