-- EMEA crude futures climbed in after-hours trading on Monday, as stalled peace talks between the US and Iran continued to disrupt flows through the Strait of Hormuz, stoking concerns over a tightening global supply outlook.
Brent crude futures rose by 3.15% to $108.65 per barrel, while Murban oil futures were up 0.29% to $103.89/bbl.
Soojin Kim, research analyst at MUFG, said crude climbed again as stalled US-Iran peace efforts and the continued closure of the Hormuz prolonged one of the biggest energy supply disruptions in recent history.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz reportedly said on Monday that the US is being "humiliated" by the Iranian leadership as President Trump is failing to negotiate an end to the ongoing Middle East conflict.
Speaking to a group of students at a secondary school in western Germany, Merz said the US doesn't have a clear exit strategy to its conflict with Iran, adding that an "entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, particularly by these so-called Revolutionary Guards."
Over the weekend, Trump canceled a planned trip by US peace envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan, which is mediating the peace talks, while Iran said it won't negotiate if it's being threatened.
Iran's Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday to discuss the conflict, as negotiations between the sides appear to have stalled.
Araghchi's trip follows a weekend of talks in Pakistan and Oman, which have both acted as mediators in the negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
"The lack of progress means the market is tightening every day, requiring oil prices to reprice at higher levels," ING strategists said, adding that there is little alternative to fill a about 13 million b/d shortfall.
Putin reportedly told Araghchi that Russia would "do everything that serves your interests, the interests of all the people of the region, so that peace can be achieved as soon as possible".
On Monday, Oman also called for diplomacy to ensure freedom of navigation in the Hormuz.
"We recognize our shared responsibility to the international community and the urgent humanitarian need to free the seafarers held for far too long. Much diplomacy is required and practical solutions to ensure lasting freedom of navigation," Badr al-Busaidi, Oman's Foreign Minister, said in a post on X.
The diplomatic push comes as the US Central Command said its forces were continuing to implement the blockade, preventing vessels from entering or leaving Iranian waters. "American forces have directed 38 ships to turn around, or return to port," CENTCOM said in a post on X Sunday.
On the supply front, Kpler said Europe's refining system is under strain as a shift towards lighter crude slates reduces vacuum gasoil production, a key feedstock for hydrocrackers.
"Supply disruptions in the Middle East and competition from Asia have curtailed access to medium sour grades, tightening the pool of distillate-rich barrels," Kpler analysts said on Monday.