Oil prices rise after Trump warns 'clock is ticking' on Iran peace talks

Donald Trump warned Iran on Monday morning in Asia that the "clock is ticking" as talks to bring the war to an end have stalled.

Brent crude was 1.85% higher at $111.28 (£83.61), while US-traded oil was up by 2.32% at $107.87. Energy markets have been on a wild ride after Iran effectively closed the key Strait of Hormuz waterway in retaliation for US and Israeli strikes on the country, which started on February 28. Around a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) usually passes through the narrow shipping route. Trump wrote on social media, "They better get moving, FAST, or there won't be anything left of them," and "TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!" Iranian media reported Washington had failed to make any concrete concessions in its response to Tehran's latest proposals to end the conflict. A lack of compromise from the US would lead to an "impasse in the negotiations", the semi-official Mehr news agency reported. Trump's message echoed his threat that a "whole civilisation" would die unless Tehran agreed to a peace deal, shortly before a ceasefire was announced in early April. The president warned last week that the truce was on "massive life support" after rejecting Iran's demands, labelling them "totally unacceptable".

During the conflict, Iran has launched attacks on neighbouring countries, including Israel, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). On Sunday, the UAE said a drone strike had triggered a fire near its nuclear power station, calling the incident a "dangerous escalation". The country's defence ministry said three drones had entered the UAE from the "western border direction". While two were intercepted, the third drone struck an electrical generator "outside the inner perimeter" of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in Abu Dhabi