LONDON
\nBrent crude oil, the global market benchmark, dropped close to 6% Wednesday after US President Donald Trump sent a peace plan to Iran. At around 0030 GMT, a barrel of Brent crude was down 5.92% at $98.30. Benchmark US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, was down 5.01% at $87.72.
\nIn Asian markets, Japan\u2019s Nikkei index and South Korea\u2019s Kospi were up by more than 3%.
\nTrump sent a peace plan to Iran as he voiced optimism Tuesday at ending nearly a month of war, with Tehran announcing that it will let \u201cnon-hostile\u201d oil vessels go through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
\nThe tentative signs of a diplomatic solution came despite new violence, with an Iranian missile causing injuries in Israel, which in turn pressed on multiple fronts and vowed to seize control of a strip of southern Lebanon.
\nThe fall in oil Wednesday came after prices jumped a day earlier, with traders turning cautious over the prospect of a negotiated agreement to end the war.
\nTrump, whose pronouncements in recent days have swung wildly from vowing massive attacks on Iran to declaring the nearly month-long war virtually over, said the United States was \u201cin negotiations right now\u201d with Iran, which has not confirmed any formal talks.
\n\u201cThey did something yesterday that was amazing, actually. They gave us a present, and the present arrived today. And it was a very big present worth a tremendous amount of money,\u201d Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
\n\u201cThat meant one thing to me \u2014 we\u2019re dealing with the right people.\u201d He did not explain further but said it related to the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has largely blockaded in retaliation for US and Israeli strikes, sending global energy prices soaring.
\nIran, in a message circulated by the International Maritime Organisation shortly afterwards, assured safe passage to \u201cnon-hostile vessels\u201d going through the strait, the gateway for one-fifth of the world\u2019s oil. Iran had already, in recent days, said it was not targeting friendly nations, although many vessels have shied away as insurance companies refuse to take risks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LONDON Brent crude oil, the global market benchmark, dropped close to 6% Wednesday after US President Donald Trump sent a peace plan to Iran. At around 0030 GMT, a barrel of Brent crude was down 5.92% at $98.30. Benchmark US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, was down 5.01% at $87.72. In Asian markets, Japan\u2019s Nikkei […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":429708,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-538233","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n