Crude oil pared earlier gains to trade below $93 a barrel after briefly surpassing $96 on Monday, following reports that Saudi Arabia is increasing shipments through its key East–West pipeline after completing repairs. Flows are said to have been restored to around 3.5 million barrels per day. The pipeline had been shut down earlier this month after sustaining damage in a drone strike launched from Iraq.
In parallel, reports indicate that US President Donald Trump is open to easing sanctions on Iran and releasing frozen Iranian funds if there is tangible progress toward a new nuclear agreement. Previously, Trump had rejected Iran’s conditional proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and had told aides he expects US strikes on Iran to resume after the November midterm elections. Waning expectations of a near-term diplomatic breakthrough between Washington and Tehran had earlier helped push crude prices to session highs.
Separately, Yemen’s Saudi-led coalition said on Saturday that it had intercepted projectiles fired by Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
