Photo: Walter Siegmund / CC BY 2.5 (archive photo)
U.S. crude settled Monday, November 2, at $96.46 a barrel, down $7.66, or 7.4 percent, from Friday’s official settlement of $104.12, according to CME Group data, capping a day of heavy selling as signs of progress toward ending the U.S.-Iran conflict weighed on prices. In electronic trading after the settlement was fixed, the December contract held near $96.36 as of about 6:35 p.m. Eastern.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell about 6 percent to near $106.50 earlier Monday morning, Reuters reported. Friday’s settlement is the benchmark fixed during the afternoon session; in electronic trading after it was fixed, the U.S. contract had already slipped to $102.95 before the weekend break, CME data show.
The slide deepened as Iranian negotiators left the Qatar-mediated talks with a draft proposal circulating and a follow-up meeting possible, Reuters reported, citing an official briefed on the matter. No agreement has been announced. On Sunday, President Trump said the conflict would end “very soon,” through a deal or further action, and Iran said the Qatar-mediated talks were advancing.
The drop came even after a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, and after OPEC+ producers met Sunday and held December output steady. Gold rose as oil fell.
JBizNews Desk | New York
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