Brent crude climbed about 0.9% after weekend tit-for-tat strikes between the United States and Iran renewed worries over normal shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. In global markets, Asian indexes moved in mixed directions while investors weighed risks to e
Oil rose again as the Strait of Hormuz faced fresh disruptions, with US and Iranian strikes over the weekend reviving fears that shipping could struggle to return to anything close to normal.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, edged up about 0.9% on Monday. By 03:30 GMT, Brent futures for August delivery stood at $73.21 a barrel—127 cents higher than the day before. The move came after tit-for-tat US and Iranian strikes that renewed doubts over whether the key waterway could quickly resume routine movement.
“Brent’s partial rebound this morning reflects a market that had perhaps run too quickly on ceasefire optimism,” Fabien Yip, a market analyst at IG in Sydney, Australia, said. He pointed to how quickly the market had shifted expectations after the threat premium had eased.
Yip said oil had “nearly unwound its entire war premium. ” even though a memorandum of understanding signed by Washington and Tehran had lacked enforcement details and strikes continued. He also described Thursday’s attack on a commercial vessel as a “reality check. ” and said this weekend’s exchanges compounded those doubts.
Asian markets opened the week with uneven momentum. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.7%, and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.9%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and Taiwan’s Taiex rose 2.2% and 1.4%, respectively.
For investors in tech-heavy baskets, the day carried an additional sting. The losses were biggest among stocks tied to the AI boom. as debate intensified over whether companies’ massive investments in the emerging technology will ultimately pay off. Japan’s SoftBank Group fell about 5%, while Advantest Corporation, a key maker of semiconductor testing equipment, slipped 3.7%.
In South Korea, memory chip giants moved sharply lower. Samsung Electronics fell about 5%, and SK Hynix dropped about 4%.
IG’s Yip also tied the broader weakness to positioning and profit-taking as markets approached a calendar milestone. “Quarter-end profit-taking is adding to the selling pressure. with investors locking in gains from what has been a remarkable run. ” he said. noting that the Kospi is up roughly 95% this year and the Nikkei up 37%.
The concern beneath the numbers, he said, is whether the AI boom can keep translating into sustained earnings growth—or whether margin pressure is arriving sooner than investors expected.
The tension around energy came from a specific sequence of strikes and counterstrikes. US Central Command announced strikes against Iran on Friday and Saturday. citing Iranian attacks on two commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. In peacetime, the Strait serves as a conduit for about one-fifth of global trade in oil and liquified natural gas.
Iran responded to those strikes by launching a series of missiles and drones targeting US military assets in Bahrain and Kuwait.
The weekend escalation also sharpened attention on negotiations. Washington and Tehran agreed to cease their attacks and renew their negotiations to end the war. multiple media outlets reported late on Sunday. citing unnamed US officials. Axios, citing an unnamed senior US official, reported the sides would hold talks in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday.
Iran has not yet commented on the reported agreement to cease hostilities or on the planned talks.
President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding to end the war on June 17, but it has repeatedly come under strain as hostilities flared and as disagreements surfaced over what the text actually means.
The pattern in markets was hard to ignore: oil moved upward as the odds of uninterrupted Hormuz shipping dimmed again, while equities—especially those already priced for a tech-driven boom—reacted to fresh uncertainty about what comes next.
With strikes behind the latest price jump and talks reportedly scheduled for Tuesday, the immediate question for traders and ordinary consumers is the same: how quickly can shipping normalize through the Strait of Hormuz, and whether the ceasefire window is holding long enough to matter.
Brent crude oil prices US-Iran strikes Strait of Hormuz Donald Trump Masoud Pezeshkian Central Command Doha talks AI stocks
So basically gas prices are about to jump again? Cool cool.
Hormuz always gets blamed for everything like it’s some magic valve. If they “think” shipping might be disrupted then oil goes up like that’s automatic. Idk, but it feels like prices are reacting to vibes.
Wait, I thought there was a ceasefire thing?? Like didn’t they already calm it down? Now it’s strikes again and oil’s climbing 0.9% which sounds tiny but that’s like how it always starts, right? Next thing you know it’s $10/gallon or whatever.
The article says oil “nearly unwound its entire war premium” but then it says strikes continued, so which is it lol. Also why did the AI stocks get hit too, like the oil is charging them rent? I don’t even understand “Brent futures” but $73 a barrel seems low if we’re supposedly in crisis.