-- パキスタンで開催される米イラン協議を前に、原油価格は金曜日、1バレル100ドルを下回る水準で安定した。市場は、今週末のイスラマバードでの協議が長期的な和平合意につながるかどうかを見極めようとしていた。 金曜日のWTI原油は0.5%高の1バレル98.25ドル、ブレント原油は0.9%高の96.88ドルで取引された。 今週初め、米国とイランは2週間の停戦に合意し、中東全域に拡大し、重要なホルムズ海峡を通る輸送を阻害していた戦争を一時停止させた。水曜日の原油価格は、停戦発表を受けて2020年以来最大の1日下落を記録した。 現在は、土曜日にワシントンとテヘランの当局者が会談する予定のイスラマバードに注目が集まっている。パキスタンが仲介役を務めた停戦は今のところ維持されているようだが、協議の行方には不確実性が残る。 CNNは金曜日、イスラエルとイランの支援を受けるヒズボラとの戦闘がレバノンで続いていると報じた。イラン議会のモハマド・バゲル・ガリバフ議長は、レバノンでの停戦が実現し、凍結されているイラン資産が解放された場合にのみ協議を開始すると述べた。 RBCキャピタル・マーケッツは、ウラン濃縮とイランに対する制裁解除が協議における主要な難航点になると指摘した。 「週末に予定されているイスラマバードでの停戦協議を前に、ウラン濃縮と制裁解除が主要な争点となるだろう」と、RBCのグローバル商品戦略責任者ヘリマ・クロフト氏は金曜日に電子メールで送付したメモの中で述べている。 クロフト氏は、ワシントンのウラン濃縮ゼロ要求が過去の協議を失敗に終わらせた原因であり、議会はイランに対する制裁解除の動きに反発する可能性が高いと指摘した。 停戦合意の一環として、ワシントンはホルムズ海峡の即時開放を要求したが、テヘランはイラン当局との調整を条件に、同海峡の「安全な航行」を認めると表明した。 「協議の結果に関わらず、ホルムズ海峡の封鎖解除は長期化するだろう。多くの国や企業が、イランとの航行や支払いに関する調整に抵抗するだろうからだ」とクロフト氏は述べた。
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