Brent crude slips below $96 a barrel as Iran talks drain the risk premium

Brent crude ducked below $96 a barrel in intraday trading, according to a FirstSquawk report. That marks a fresh leg down from the $97–98 range it held earlier in the session. The slide extends a bruising week for the benchmark, which has shed roughly 16% and touched a two-month low under $95 a barrel on November 4.

The move looks less like a supply shock and more like a risk premium going flat. Traders are repricing barrels on signs of possible progress in U.S.–Iran negotiations, even as shipping disruptions continue in the Strait of Hormuz. The two forces usually pull prices in opposite directions — right now the diplomatic signal is winning.

That leaves the next few sessions hinging on headlines rather than inventories. Attention is fixed on the U.S.–Iran talks for any concrete movement, and on OPEC for word of production adjustments that could reset expectations. Middle East geopolitical developments are the third lever, with any shift in supply and demand dynamics rippling straight into pricing.

For now, Brent is trading in the mid-$90s after a week that erased a hefty chunk of its recent gains.