Oil Falls After Trump Delays Attack on Iranian Power Plants
Oil prices fell sharply on Monday (March 23) after US President Donald Trump said he would delay for five days a planned military strike on Iranian power plants, following what he called "constructive" talks. This statement came just hours before a deadline that had previously risked a new escalation, as the conflict entered its fourth week.
Brent futures fell about 9.72% to $101.28 per barrel at 12:54 GMT, after earlier dropping as much as 14.5% to a session low of $96. Meanwhile, WTI fell nearly 8.9% to $89.49 per barrel, after earlier dropping as much as 14.2% to $84.37.
The declines pared some of the losses after Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that no talks were underway between the US and Iran. The report caused the market to slightly correct its initial reaction, but oil prices remained in the red due to continued high volatility.
Earlier on Saturday, Trump warned that Iran's power plants would be destroyed if Tehran failed to "fully open" the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping within 48 hours, with a deadline of approximately 7:44 p.m. EDT (23:44 GMT) on Monday. The statement prompted a retaliatory threat from Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which said it would attack Israeli power plants and facilities supplying US bases in the Gulf if Trump carried out his threat to "destroy" Iran's power grid.
The conflict has so far damaged key energy facilities in the Gulf and nearly halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz—a passage that handles about 20% of global oil and LNG flows. This situation makes the oil market highly headline-driven: a single statement can trigger a major spike or drop in a single session.
Source: Newsmaker.id
