Oil prices rose and stocks fell modestly on Sunday after President Trump called off a trip to Pakistan by two of his top negotiators for a new round of peace talks with Iran.
His latest change of heart leaves the countries locked in a stalemate, still under a cease-fire agreement but without a clear path to ending the war.
In the meantime, the United States and Iran are trying to inflict economic damage on each other by strangling shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping artery that connects the Persian Gulf to buyers around the world.
Oil prices moved higher.
-
The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, rose more than 2 percent for upcoming contracts. That brought the price of a contract that is meant to estimate the value of oil in June to about $107 a barrel, while a later contract, for July, rose to roughly $101 a barrel. The war has made it difficult for people to secure oil, so many are willing to pay a premium for oil that they can get sooner.
-
West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark, which still references its June contract, rose roughly 2 percent to around $96 a barrel.
-
Investors and analysts are focused on the continued disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that is a vital trading route for oil and natural gas that normally carries as much as one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Stocks nudged lower.
-
Futures on the S&P 500 pointed to a modest 0.3 percent drop when stocks open for trading in the United States on Monday. The index rose roughly 0.5 percent last week, the first time it has risen four weeks in a row since October 2024 in the run-up to the presidential election.
Gasoline prices rise.
-
Gas prices rose again on Sunday, jumping to a national average of about $4.10 a gallon, according to the AAA motor club. That means drivers are paying about 37 percent more for gasoline than they were when the war started at the end of February. But prices remain several cents below recent highs hit earlier this month.
-
Gas prices don’t move in lock step with crude, usually trailing increases or drops by a few days.
-
Diesel prices have increased even more quickly and stood at $5.46 on Sunday, up around 45 percent since the start of the war.
The post Muted Reaction as Oil and Stock Markets Reopen appeared first on New York Times.
