Oil Prices Steady as Trump Expects Iran Deal but Threatens Strikes

Oil prices were little changed Tuesday, after President Donald Trump told CNBC that he expects a deal with Iran but is ready to resume military strikes if negotiations this week don't result in an agreement.

"What I think is that we're going to end up with a great deal," Trump said in a phone interview on "Squawk Box." "I think they have no choice. We've taken out their navy, we've taken out their air force, we've taken out their leaders."

West Texas Intermediate futures for May delivery lost 51 cents to $89.10 per barrel as of 9:15 a.m. ET. International benchmark Brent crude futures for June delivery fell 42 cents to $95.06 per barrel.

Trump told CNBC he's not interested in extending the ceasefire past Wednesday. He threatened to resume the war if a deal is not reached.

"I expect to be bombing because I think that's a better attitude to go in with," The president said. "But we're ready to go. I mean, the military is raring to go."

Trump dismissed rising oil prices as "peanuts" and said he is surprised that prices are not much higher. "If you would have told me that oil is at 90 as opposed to 200 I would be frankly surprised," he said.

Vice President JD Vance will lead the U.S. delegation to the second round of peace talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, two senior U.S. officials told MS NOW. Senior Iranian officials have not publicly committed to participate in the talks. But Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, is expected to attend if Vances does, a foreign diplomat told MS NOW.

The oil supply disruption will only worsen this month as tanker traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz remains very low, said Paola Rodriguez-Masiu, Rystad Energy's chief oil analyst. The Gulf states are expected to produce 14.3 million barrels per day in April, a decline of 3 million bpd compared to March levels and about 13 million bpd below pre-war levels, Rodriguez-Masiu told clients in a Monday note.