Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 22, 2026
2 min readLast updated: April 2, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleOil prices slide as Trump moves to raise U.S. import tariffs to 15%, clouding global growth and fuel demand. Brent and WTI dipped despite Iran tensions that lifted crude more than 5% last week.
By Seher Dareen and Enes Tunagur
LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Oil prices reached a six-month high on Monday as the U.S. and Iran prepared for a third round of nuclear talks while increased economic uncertainty was also in focus after the latest U.S. tariff upheaval.
Brent crude futures were up 62 cents or nearly 0.9% at $72.38 a barrel, a fresh six-month high, by 1432 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 69 cents or 1% to $67.17.
Growing concern over potential military conflict between the U.S. and Iran pushed Brent prices up more than 5% last week to their highest since July 2025 at $72.34.
"With the next, and possibly last, round of the Iranian nuclear talks not until Thursday, focus is on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down import tariffs and the subsequent reaction from the government," said PVM Oil Associates analyst Tamas Varga.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency said it would halt collections of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act at 12:01 a.m. EST (0501 GMT) on Tuesday.
However, Trump said on Saturday that he would raise a temporary tariff from 10% to 15% on U.S. imports from all countries, the maximum allowed under the law, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down his previous tariff programme.
"This morning’s weakness is a defensive move, and needless to say, with the uncertainty surrounding a U.S. military intervention in Iran, the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war and now the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision, oil price direction is not (clear), but volatility is guaranteed," PVM's Varga said.
Iran has indicated it is prepared to make concessions on its nuclear programme in return for lifting sanctions and recognition of its right to enrich uranium, a senior Iranian official told Reuters ahead of Thursday's third round of nuclear talks between the two nations.
While prices on paper had moved higher, softer prompt spreads and weaker physical differentials pointed to pricing being based on geopolitical concerns rather than an actual lack of oil in the market, Morgan Stanley analysts said in a note.
(Reporting by Seher Dareen and Enes Tunagur in London, Mohi Narayan in New Delhi and Florence Tan in SingaporeEditing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise, David Goodman and Nick Zieminski)
Oil prices retreated after President Trump said he would raise U.S. import tariffs to 15%, stoking worries about global economic growth and fuel demand.
Brent slipped 45 cents to $71.31 a barrel and WTI fell 50 cents to $65.98, modest declines amid broader market uncertainty.
Geopolitical risks from U.S.–Iran tensions limited losses after driving more than 5% gains the previous week, but tariff uncertainty outweighed those supports.
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