Oil traders reacted instantly on Monday when Iran fired missiles at a U.S. military base in Qatar, selling off crude instead of pushing prices up. Merely three hours before the strikes, Trump had gone on Truth Social to tell traders to chill out and not to “give in to the enemy” by surging oil prices

Brent futures for September delivery were trading 0.50 per cent higher at $66.76 per barrel, down 15.91 per cent from the June 23 level.

An inventory drop in the US and fresh economic support measures from China drive crude oil prices higher, even as Middle East tensions ease.