The price of Brent oil plummeted by more than 10% this Monday morning (23), reaching US$96 per barrel, after US President Donald Trump announced the postponement of attacks on Iranian energy targets for five days, due to supposed negotiations on a ceasefire that Iran denies are taking place.
At 8:20 am (Brasília time), Brent – the European reference for crude oil – due in May fell 10.23%, reaching US$ 100.71 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) registered a drop of 10.39%, reaching US$ 88.
Similarly, the price of natural gas for delivery within a month on the Dutch TTF market, the benchmark in Europe, which had risen sharply in the morning, is currently down 6% to €56.19 per megawatt-hour (MWh).
The price of Brent reacted to a statement from Trump, published on his Truth Social account, in which he said the US and Iran had held “very positive and productive” talks over the past two days about a complete resolution of hostilities in the Middle East.
“In view of the tone of these in-depth, detailed and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week, I have instructed the War Department to postpone all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a period of five days, subject to the success of ongoing meetings and discussions,” he stated.
Trump says he is negotiating with Iran’s “respected” leader, but not its supreme leader
US President Donald Trump told journalists on Monday that the negotiations he is holding with Iran to end the war are with a “respected” leader of the regime, whose identity he refused to reveal, and that it is not the supreme leader, Mukhta Khamenei, son of the Ayatollah killed in Israeli attacks Ali Khamenei.
“(We are in contact) with a high-ranking person. Don’t forget: we annihilated the first, second and, to a large extent, the third generation of leadership. But we are dealing with a man who I consider to be the most respected and the leader. You know, it’s a little complicated, we annihilated them all,” he told the press at Palm Beach airport (Florida), where he spent the weekend.
Questioned by a reporter from CNNTrump responded, “No, not with the Supreme Leader.” He added that he cannot confirm whether the Iranian regime’s leadership survived the recent attacks. “We have no news about his son. Every now and then we see a statement, but we don’t know if he is alive.”
According to the American president, Israel will be “very happy” with the agreement it says it is negotiating with Iran. “We talked to Israel a short time ago. I think they will be very happy. This will be peace for Israel, long-term peace, guaranteed peace if that happens,” he said.
Trump proposes joint US-Iran control of the Strait of Hormuz
Trump also stated that the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened “soon” if negotiations are successful and raised the possibility of “joint” control of this strategic waterway by the US and Iran.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil passes, is blocked by Iran in response to the offensive launched by the US and Israel on February 28 against the Islamic regime.
Trump has tried unsuccessfully in recent days to form a military coalition with his allies to escort ships through the strait, but European countries refuse to get involved in a conflict they blame on Washington.
