On Monday, August 3, 2026, oil prices fell by more than $4 a barrel after U.S. President Donald Trump postponed a fresh attack on Iran to pursue a swift agreement aimed at halting Tehran's nuclear ambitions and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures declined $4.23, or 4.8%, to $83.70 by 10:11 GMT, recovering slightly from a three-week low earlier in the session. West Texas Intermediate crude dropped $5.07, or 6%, to $79.60 a barrel. These marked the largest daily percentage and absolute falls for both benchmarks since the previous Monday. The contracts had surged over 20% last month amid renewed U.S.-Iran tensions and attacks on tankers near Oman, which raised security concerns and deterred oil shipments through the Gulf.

In a sign of de-escalation, Trump stated on his Truth Social platform late Saturday that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries requested time to finalize a deal that would lead to "the Immediate, Complete and Total" reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and "an end to Iran's nuclear threat."

IG market analyst Tony Sycamore commented, "The bigger focus is whether this week turns into a rinse and repeat of last week — with hopes of a deal collapsing as Iran digs in its heels and continues to leverage its control over the Strait."

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported three additional tanker attacks since Saturday. On Sunday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) approved an oil production quota increase of approximately 188,000 barrels per day starting in September.

Separately, the U.S. dollar weakened sharply against the Japanese yen on Monday after President Trump and Japan's finance minister confirmed coordinated market interventions by both countries.

Sources