MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/. Oil buyers may increase purchases during the two-week truce between Iran and the US, making a sharp decline in prices unlikely, head of Russian equities analysis at BCS World of Investments Kirill Bakhtin told TASS.
"Since early April, a sharp divergence has emerged between the physical oil market and futures, with physical prices showing a significant premium of over $30 per barrel. We do not rule out a scenario in which buyers become more active during the two-week truce window, and as a result, there may be no sharp decline in prices in the physical market in the near term," he said.
Bakhtin noted that the first data snapshot will be available tomorrow morning. "In addition, the possibility of talks collapsing while discussing the 10 negotiation points cannot be ruled out — until a final agreement is announced, energy prices will remain elevated," he added.
On April 7, US President Donald Trump announced a two-week mutual ceasefire with Iran. The decision was made in light of a proposal by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and is "subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the complete, immediate, and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz", the US leader said. Sharif invited Iranian and US delegations to talks in Islamabad on April 10 to reach a final agreement. According to CNN, the US delegation will include Vice President J.D. Vance, presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.