Crude Oil Prices Ease After Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Raises Hopes Of Breakthrough In US-Iran Peace Talks

Crude oil prices on Thursday eased after the United States announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon.

Global oil benchmark Brent Crude declined marginally by 0.7 percent to around $97 per barrel while American benchmark WTI Crude was down by 0.6 percent to around $95 per barrel during the Asian trade hours.

After a high-level trilateral meeting on Wednesday, the United States, Lebanon and Israel announced a cease fire between the latter two.

As part of the agreement, Hezbollah would withdraw from southern Lebanon and stop attacks on Israel. Also, Israel and the Lebanese government work toward broader security arrangements.

The ceasefire statement says that the Lebanese Armed Forces will take exclusive control of the territory to the exclusion of all non-state actors.

As the United States-brokered ceasefire is expected to benefit the former in peace talks with Iran, oil prices eased while traders remaining cautious.

Iran has maintained that cessation of Israeli aggression against Lebanon is its one of the core demands for a peace deal with the United States.

Hence, the latest ceasefire agreement could fast track discussions between the US and Iran and pave the way for opening of the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

According to a report by Aljazeera, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has warned that any Israeli attack on Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, would “lead to a full resumption of war”.

Even after the ceasefire agreement, certain issues, like Iran’s position on continuing its nuclear programme, could still create bottlenecks in a long-awaited breakthrough between Iran and the US.

Hence, market is likely to remain cautious until some progress takes places on the ground.

While the US and Iran had announced a ceasefire in fire, they have continued to attack each other’s assets in the Gulf region.