Brent little changed after US-China meeting

Brent’s price remained largely unchanged following the highly anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

IMAGE: Getty Images

Washington and Beijing have agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain accessible to commercial vessel traffic, according to a statement by the White House.

“The two sides agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy,” the White House said.

The statement came following Trump’s state visit to Beijing – which included high-level discussions on the rapidly evolving Middle East situation.

“Crude oil was steady as traders monitored the meeting between presidents Trump and Xi in Beijing,” ANZ Bank’s senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said.

Oil market participants expect China to push Iran toward an agreement with the US that could potentially end the conflict and allow energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz to resume.

“President Xi also made clear China’s opposition to the militarization of the Strait and any effort to charge a toll for its use,” the White House added, amid US negotiations with Tehran to reach a final peace deal.

Last month, Trump extended the temporary US-Iran ceasefire but made clear that the US Navy would maintain its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz – a move Tehran labelled an act of war.

“Some hope that China could exert pressure on Iran to reach a deal with the US, to end the war and lead to a resumption of energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz,” two analysts from ING Bank noted.

By Aparupa Mazumder

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