Oil prices rose on Tuesday, supported by bargain hunting after recent declines and by reports of US military strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island, which heightened concerns about potential supply disruptions. Prices remained below recent highs, however, as hopes of progress in US-Iran diplomatic talks eased supply concerns, according to Anadolu Agency. International benchmark Brent crude futures for January delivery rose about 1.5% to $106.40 a barrel at 9:47 a.m. local time (0647 GMT), compared with the previous close of $104.77.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for December delivery rose 1.7% to $98.06 a barrel, up from $96.42 at the previous close. US military forces carried out "defensive" strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island on Monday, local media reported, citing a US official. "This was a defensive measure for Iranians using surface to air missiles against US assets," the official was quoted as saying.
The attack was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. US President Donald Trump sought to downplay the possibility of renewed large-scale military confrontation with Iran following Tuesday's midterm elections. "We had a war with Iran.
We won," Trump told reporters on Monday. "I don't know if you even call it a war because we haven't been doing any fighting for months." However, US officials told the Journal that American forces have continued carrying out smaller-scale strikes against Iranian targets for several weeks. According to the report, some officials said the operations were aimed at preventing Iran from developing the capability to threaten or attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Separately, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Monday that it had downed two US drones south of Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. Diplomatic developments limited further price gains. US Vice President JD Vance said on Monday that Washington had made progress in talks with Iran and expressed optimism about reaching a negotiated settlement.
"The president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement. We're going to keep on working at it," Vance told reporters. Asked whether Iran had been given a deadline before US strikes could resume, he said: "No, we haven't set deadlines." Earlier on Monday, Trump said during the reopening of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington that Iran was seeking an agreement to end the conflict, which is now in its ninth month.
"They want to make a deal, and that could happen," Trump said, adding that Iran had asked Washington to stop targeting its leaders, "and we will." Iran also said on Monday that it continued to exchange messages with the US through mediators, stressing that its revised seven-stage diplomatic proposal could be fully implemented within two days. Source: Anadolu Agency, energy section, 3 November 2026. Additional sources cited in the report: The Wall Street Journal, Tasnim news agency, IRGC statement.
Source: aa.com.tr