WTI crude futures rose above $96 per barrel on Monday, recovering losses from the previous session as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed amid stalled US–Iran peace talks. US President Donald Trump has ordered negotiators to suspend discussions, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated that Tehran will not enter into “imposed negotiations under threats or blockade.”
The Iran war has now entered its ninth week, prompting what the IEA has described as the largest energy supply shock on record, intensifying inflationary pressures and darkening the global growth outlook. The ongoing US naval blockade continues to limit Iranian crude exports and remains a key obstacle to any diplomatic breakthrough. Analysts caution that even if the strait were to reopen, it could take months for oil flows to return to normal, keeping supplies tight and sustaining upward pressure on global energy markets.
