Brent Surges Past $107 as Trump Rejects Iran Plan — SkimNews
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- Brent crude rose more than 3 percent to nearly $108 a barrel during Asian trading on Monday, settling at $107.35 shortly before 08:00 GMT after easing in the afternoon.
- Under Iran's proposal announced at the UN General Assembly on Friday, the US would release frozen Iranian funds, lift sanctions, and end its naval blockade in exchange for Iran reopening the strait and returning to nuclear talks within a week.
- Trump declared on Saturday that Tehran's latest proposal was 'not acceptable,' triggering the market reaction and dashing the diplomatic opening.
- Before the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran in late February, roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies flowed through the Strait of Hormuz, which links the Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
- Vessel transits through the strait rose to 132 for September 21–27 from 116 the previous week, per MarineTraffic — a recovery that still falls well below the pre-war average of roughly 130 crossings per day.
- Asia-Pacific stock benchmarks were mixed: South Korea's Kospi fell 2.70 percent and Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 0.73 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.54 percent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.17 percent.
Why it matters: Trump's rejection keeps the US naval blockade in place and the Strait of Hormuz only partially open, leaving oil anchored above $107 and Iran's frozen funds inaccessible. Pre-war traffic of roughly 130 daily transits has not recovered, so supply remains constrained even as weekly crossings edged up to 132 — a thin lifeline that Asia-Pacific markets, including South Korea's Kospi falling 2.7 percent, are already pricing in.
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