London (AFP) – Global oil prices rose Tuesday, recovering some of the previous session’s heavy losses as uncertainty surrounded the prospect of new talks to end the US-Iran war. Brent North Sea crude, the main international contract, rose 1.5 percent after shedding almost five percent Monday on hopes of a deal to stop the Gulf conflict that has lasted more than five months. Stocks markets rose after last week’s tech-led rollercoaster ride as investors tracked a rally on Wall Street that saw the Dow hit a record high.
On currency markets, the yen weakened against the dollar after Friday’s surge thanks to a historic intervention by Japanese and US authorities to prop up the Asian currency. Tuesday’s main focus was on oil, which “partially reversed Monday’s sharp decline,” said Patrick Munnelly, a market strategist at Tickmill Group. “The market is now trying to price a more nuanced geopolitical path: lower risk of immediate military escalation, but no guarantee yet that the Strait of Hormuz returns to normal functioning,” he said.
An unknown projectile hit a cargo ship in the strait on Tuesday as Trump insisted the waterway could reopen within hours. The Strait of Hormuz, a main conduit for global oil and gas supplies, has been a key point of tension in the US-Iran conflict. Disruptions to supplies have sent oil prices soaring, sending profits surging for energy majors. Shares in BP jumped 1.5 percent Tuesday after the British group said its net profit more than doubled in the second quarter. The five biggest Western energy majors – BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, and TotalEnergies – reported combined net profits of almost $47 billion for the April-June period. Oil titan Saudi Aramco on Tuesday reported a 44 percent surge in net profits.
Away from the energy market, Lufthansa’s share price slumped 11 percent after the German airline said volatile jet fuel costs would impact full-year profit. Traders are also awaiting earnings from SpaceX after the Wall Street close on Tuesday, as well as the release of US jobs data this week that could provide a fresh guide for interest rates in the world’s biggest economy.
**Key figures around 1045 GMT:**
– Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $85.02 per barrel
– West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.1 percent at $81.20 per barrel
– London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 10,897.36 points
– Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 8,623.82
– Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 26,167.31
– Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.3 percent at 63,957.53 (close)
– Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 25,852.92 (close)
– Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 3,822.28 (close)
– New York – DOW: UP 1.3 percent at 53,178.41 (close)
– Dollar/yen: UP at 157.81 yen from 156.85 yen on Monday
– Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1516 from $1.1513
– Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3447 from $1.3433
– Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.66 pence from 85.70 pence
© 2024 AFP
