Brent crude settled up 13 cents at $65.54 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 20 cents to $62.69. Both benchmarks had posted over 1% weekly gains the previous week.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said nuclear talks would stall if the U.S. insists Tehran halt uranium enrichment, dampening hopes for a deal that could lift sanctions and release 300,000–400,000 barrels per day of Iranian oil onto the market. Analyst Alex Hodes of StoneX noted that “potential increase looks very unlikely now.”
Meanwhile, Moody’s downgrade of the U.S. sovereign credit rating raised concerns about the health of the world’s largest oil-consuming economy. Further headwinds came from weaker-than-expected industrial output and retail sales in China, the top global oil importer.
UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo called the Chinese data “modestly bearish” but noted it was enough to stall crude’s momentum.
Adding to investor caution, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that President Trump will move forward with new tariffs on trading partners not negotiating “in good faith,” reinforcing trade-related uncertainty.
Geopolitical risks remain in focus. Russian President Vladimir Putin, after speaking with Trump, signaled openness to a memorandum with Ukraine on a future peace deal. Analysts like Andrew Lipow cautioned that a peace resolution could lead to sanctions relief on Russian oil, adding more supply and downward pressure on prices.