Oil sinks 4% as Trump calls new Iran strikes 'highly unlikely'

Oil got hammered Monday after President Donald Trump poured cold water on the idea of another round of strikes on Iran. Speaking on the condition that peace negotiations keep moving, Trump called fresh attacks “highly unlikely,” according to Breaking The News. He also said he has no plans to hit Iranian power plants or bridges, reasoning they take too long to rebuild.

The sell-off was sharp and fast. West Texas Intermediate for December delivery slid by 4.07%, trading at $87.08 a barrel as of 7:37 am ET, while Brent for January 2027 settlements dropped by 4.4%, going for $94.09 a barrel a minute later. The retreat had already been underway early Monday: WTI was down 1.1%, at $89.83, and Brent off 1.71%, at $96.59, just after 4 am ET.

The timing lands right on the heels of a rough week for Republicans. Trump told CBS' 60 Minutes that the war with Iran and high gasoline prices were the main drivers of his party's midterm election losses last week. “They didn't like the war. They didn't like the fact that gasoline went up,” he said, also pointing to what he described as an “incredibly” strong dislike for Israel among voters.

Monday's slide flips the script from just days earlier. On November 5, crude rallied hard — Brent climbed more than 3% and WTI for December jumped 2.35%, trading at $90.19 a barrel — as investors waited on the next move in the Washington–Tehran conflict, with Israel reportedly bracing for a possible preemptive Iranian strike.

Meanwhile, the US rig count keeps grinding higher. Baker Hughes reported the oil rig count rose by one in the week ending November 6, reaching 463 — up 49 from a year ago. Gas rigs also gained one, hitting 131, an 11-rig jump from last year's 120. The total now sits at 604, compared with 548 a year earlier. Canada's oil rig count held steady at 154, while its gas rigs fell by two, landing at 66.