Mucahithan Avcioglu
21 April 2026•Update: 22 April 2026
Oil prices fluctuated sharply on Tuesday, with Brent futures hovering around $100 per barrel after US President Donald Trump announced that the ceasefire with Iran would be extended while Washington keeps its naval blockade in place.
The price of Brent crude futures rose 4.3% to around $99.6 per barrel as of 2020GMT, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 3.65 to $90.5.
In a statement on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he had directed the US military to “continue the Blockade” and remain ready, while extending the ceasefire until Iranian leaders and representatives submit a unified proposal and discussions are concluded.
The announcement appeared to ease some immediate fears of a renewed military escalation, but markets remained volatile as the continued blockade and lack of a finalized diplomatic agreement kept concerns over supply risks in focus.
Trump said the decision came after Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asked Washington to hold off on an attack on Iran until Tehran’s leadership could come up with a unified position.
The latest development followed a tense run-up to the original ceasefire deadline, with investors closely watching whether diplomacy would hold and whether follow-up talks between Washington and Tehran could move forward.
Additional doubts had emerged earlier Tuesday after a planned US delegation departure for Pakistan for a second round of face-to-face talks with Iran was delayed due to what US media reports described as additional policy meetings in Washington.
Pakistan also said Tuesday that Iran’s participation in the Islamabad talks remained unresolved, saying formal confirmation from the Iranian side was still awaited.
The US and Iran held a first round of high-level face-to-face talks in Pakistan earlier this month, but those negotiations ended without a deal.
Energy markets have remained highly sensitive to developments around the ceasefire and the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global crude and fuel shipments, with each sign of diplomatic strain feeding concerns about tighter supply.
Oil prices had initially fallen and then stabilized around $90-$95 per barrel after the US and Iran announced last week that the Strait of Hormuz had reopened, but that relief proved short-lived as uncertainty over the durability of the ceasefire and the wider diplomatic process returned to the forefront.
