Oil prices fell on Monday.
The West Texas Intermediate for December delivery dropped 3.98 U.S. dollars, or 4.38 percent, to settle at 86.85 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for January delivery lost 5.75 dollars, or 5.85 percent, to settle at 92.57 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
In a phone interview with CNN on Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that renewed military strikes on Iran were "highly unlikely" as long as negotiations made progress, but did not rule out further military action.
EBW AnalyticsGroup said it remains skeptical that U.S.-Iran discussions will yield fruit. Nevertheless, if regional crude exports remain stout, the United States may have less reason to restart an active military campaign.
The global oil market recorded a surplus of 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in September and 1.4 million bpd in October, driven by recovering Middle Eastern oil flows, rising output from other producers and weak demand, according to a recent report by JPMorgan.
Crude futures settle lower
A Chinese envoy on Monday called for preserving basic humanitarian protections, easing tensions and seizing a window for peace talks as the UN Security Council voiced concern over rising civilian casualties and worsening winter humanitarian risks in Ukraine.
Addressing the UN Security Council, Sun Lei, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, said the Ukraine crisis was reaching a critical juncture for a negotiated settlement, as international calls for peace and talks grew stronger. Recent exchanges among key stakeholders had sent positive signals, he said, and China supported efforts toward peace, urging all parties to work with one another, sustain the positive momentum and advance an early political settlement.
Sun said parties to the conflict had recently expressed views on a political resolution, while the international community had made extensive diplomatic efforts to encourage peace and negotiations. Russia, Ukraine and the United States are set to hold another round of trilateral talks. The parties should demonstrate political will, maintain contact and communication, gradually build consensus and work together toward a comprehensive, lasting and binding peace agreement, he said.
"Conflict and war have no winners. All parties should learn lessons from this crisis, uphold the principle of indivisible security, take each other's legitimate security concerns seriously and address them properly, and pay particular attention to the root causes of the conflict. They should build a balanced, effective and sustainable regional security architecture," said Sun.
Sun said China's position on Ukraine was consistent and that China had always advocated peace talks and a political settlement. China has maintained close communication with Russia, Ukraine and other relevant parties and actively pursued shuttle diplomacy, working persistently to create conditions for talks and build consensus for peace.
China stands ready to continue working with the international community toward an early ceasefire, an end to hostilities, and lasting peace and stability in the region, he said.
China calls for peace talks to end Ukraine crisis
