Oil prices fall on hopes for Iran nuclear deal

Oil prices fall on hopes for Iran nuclear deal
by AFP Staff Writers
New York (AFP) May 15, 2025

Oil prices fell Thursday while global equities were mixed after President Donald Trump said the United States was close to making a deal on Iran's nuclear program.

Trump made the remarks in Qatar before flying to the United Arab Emirates for the third and final leg of a Gulf tour that began in Saudi Arabia.

Trump's comments came after Iran held its fourth round of talks with the US administration. Washington has said it wishes to avoid a threatened military strike by Israel on Tehran's contested nuclear program.

"Traders focused on the prospect of a US-Iran nuclear deal which could see economic sanctions lifted on the latter and potentially lead to greater supplies of oil," noted Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

Both main crude contracts fell by more than two percent in value on hopes that US sanctions on Iran might be lifted as part of the deal.

That could, in turn, increase the Islamic republic's oil exports.

In Europe, the main markets overcame early weakness to finish higher.

Sentiment in London was boosted by official data showing Britain's economy grew more than expected in the first quarter -- before UK business tax hikes and US tariffs took effect.

Back on Wall Street, both the Dow and S&P 500 rose, while the Nasdaq retreated following mixed US economic data.

Data showed US retail sales were near-flat in the United States in April, while US wholesale inflation unexpectedly fell during the month.

Shares in Walmart retreated after the retail giant warned of higher prices due to Trump's tariffs. CEO Doug McMillon welcomed a de-escalation of Washington's trade war with China but said the levies remained too high for the retailer to absorb.

"We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible but given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels, we aren't able to absorb all the pressure," McMillon told investors.

Meanwhile, investors awaited fresh developments in trade talks, with countries looking to reach deals to avoid Trump's tariff blitz.

With excitement from the China-US detente fading, markets are seeking new catalysts.

"We're back into the vacuum where news about trade dominates everything," said Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management.

After tumbling in early April following Trump's sweeping tariff plan, stocks have been on the upswing in recent weeks as the US president has retreated from some of the most onerous levies while announcing a trade deal with Britain and a de-escalation with China.

But Hogan said markets are bracing for a hit to inflation later in 2025 from the overall policy shift to higher tariffs.

- Key figures at around 2050 GMT -

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.4 percent at $61.62 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.4 percent at $64.53 per barrel

New York - Dow: UP 0.7 percent at 42,322.75 (close)

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.4 percent at 5,916.93 (close)

New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 19,112.32 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 8,633.75 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.2 percent at 7,853.47 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 23,695.59 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.0 percent at 37,755.51 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.8 percent at 23,453.16 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,380.82 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1185 from $1.1175 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3304 from $1.3263

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 145.65 yen from 146.75 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 84.07 from 84.23 pence

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