Oil prices are little changed after surrendering earlier gains, as optimism over talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was tempered by Iran’s insistence that the United States satisfy several demands before the waterway could reopen, Reuters reports.
Brent crude futures stood at $83.54 a barrel, off 1pc, by 11:43am PKT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 15 cents, or 0.2pc to $78.03 a barrel.
Both benchmarks had fallen more than 7pc last week on hopes that Iran and Oman were close to reaching a deal that would result in a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which carried a fifth of the world’s oil before the war.
