Oil Prices Plunge Amid Hopes for US-Iran Diplomacy

Oil prices declined to their lowest in over a week on Monday as hopes for diplomacy between the US and Iran eased risk premiums. Brent crude futures fell to $101.71 a barrel, down $2.16 or 2.08% from Friday's close.

The drop was attributed to the possibility of a diplomatic path to de-escalate the US-Iran war emerging this week, with President Donald Trump expressing openness to meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian at the UN General Assembly in New York.

However, tensions remained elevated in the Middle East as Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis launched attacks on 'sensitive' sites in Riyadh and an Aramco facility in Yanbu. Saudi exports recovered partially, averaging 4 million barrels per day in September after slumping to 2.4 million bpd in August.