Crude oil futures traded lower on Monday morning after the US and Iran halted strikes against each other’s targets over the weekend.At 9.32 am on Monday, October Brent oil futures were at $87.80, down by 4.23 per cent, and September crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $84.93, down by 4.90 per cent. August crude oil futures were trading at ₹8,232 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Monday against the previous close of ₹8,604, down by 4.32 per cent, and September futures were trading at ₹7,948 against the previous close of ₹8,247, down by 3.63 per cent.Mike Waltz, US ambassador to the United Nations, told ‘Fox News Sunday’ that US President Donald Trump ‌has paused attacks on Iran to allow more room for diplomacy. “He’s giving talks some space, he’s ⁠giving it a little bit of room,” he said.Quoting unnamed Iranian officials, a Reuters report said that Iran will halt its attacks as long as US does the same.In their Commodities Feed for Monday, Warren Patterson, Head of Commodities Strategy of ING Think, and Ewa Manthey, Commodities Strategist, said the price action in oil on Monday morning clearly reflects the market’s desperation for positive news. After 13 days of strikes, the US has held off on further strikes over the last two days, while Iran also paused retaliatory attacks. The recess has seen Brent retreat aggressively, down more than 7 per cent at one stage, briefly below $90 a barrel.Mentioning that this is the first tangible signal of de-escalation, they said the reasons behind it are less clear. There’s little explanation from the US. Also, it hasn’t yet led to any meaningful pickup in vessel flows through the Strait of Hormuz.“We’re unlikely to see any recovery until there’s clarity on whether this de-escalation is more permanent and whether vessels can navigate the strait without fear of attack,” they said.While there are signs of de-escalation between the US and Iran, the Houthis in Yemen stepped up their attacks on Saudi Arabia. The Houthis claimed to have attacked a number of targets in Saudi, including energy facilities in Jazan and Yanbu. Amid disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia has been exporting the bulk of its crude oil from Yanbu on the Red Sea, they said.Published on July 27, 2026