Oil stays above $104 as Trump says Iran ceasefire is ‘on life support’

Global oil prices held firm on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump said the fragile ceasefire with Iran was “on life support”, raising fears that the 10-week conflict in West Asia could intensify again and continue disrupting global energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures remained above $104 per barrel while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded near $98, extending gains from the previous session as markets reacted to renewed geopolitical uncertainty.

Brent crude futures for July delivery were trading at $104.41 a barrel, while WTI crude futures for June delivery stood at $98.23 per barrel in early trade.

The latest surge in prices came after Trump rejected Iran’s response to a US peace proposal and questioned the future of the ceasefire arrangement.

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“I would call it the weakest right now,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “After reading that piece of garbage they sent us, I didn’t even finish reading it. It’s on life support.”

The remarks have deepened concerns that diplomatic efforts to stabilise the region are collapsing just weeks after hopes emerged for a broader de-escalation.

The conflict has already severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow Gulf passage through which nearly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply flows every day. Any prolonged disruption in the route threatens to tighten global crude supplies further and worsen inflation pressures worldwide.

Days after Washington floated a proposal aimed at restarting negotiations, Tehran responded with a list of demands tied not only to Iran but also to broader regional conflicts, including the fighting in Lebanon involving Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

According to reports, Iran demanded compensation for war-related damage, reaffirmed its sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and called on the United States to end its naval blockade, lift sanctions, guarantee no further attacks and remove restrictions on Iranian oil exports.

Trump also claimed on Monday that Iran was willing to hand over what he described as “the nuclear dust” — an apparent reference to Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile. He added that only the United States and China had the capability to retrieve it, though he did not elaborate further.

Markets are now increasingly pricing in the risk of a prolonged conflict rather than a short-term disruption.

Analysts say the collapse of negotiations could keep oil prices elevated for weeks, especially if military tensions escalate again around key Gulf shipping lanes.

The Iran conflict is also expected to dominate discussions when Trump meets Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week. Washington has intensified pressure on Beijing over its purchases of Iranian crude oil despite Western sanctions.

The US Treasury Department on Monday announced fresh sanctions against entities accused of helping Iran export oil to China, which remains Tehran’s largest crude buyer.

Meanwhile, Saudi Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser warned that disruptions around Hormuz were removing nearly 100 million barrels of supply from global markets every week.

Saudi Arabia has already redirected part of its exports through western ports outside the Gulf, though traders say supply bottlenecks and rising freight costs continue to keep markets under pressure.

With inputs from agencies.