Oil prices are falling amid mixed signals on the US-Iran peace deal Oil and Gas

The Japanese stock market is rising on the prospect of an end to the US-Israel conflict over Iran.

Oil prices have fallen sharply amid low hopes for a deal to end the US-Israel war on Iran.

Brent crude, the world’s main benchmark for oil prices, fell nearly 5 percent on Sunday as US President Donald Trump gave mixed messages about the prospect of an end to the conflict.

July Brent futures stood at $98.47 a barrel as of 01:05 GMT, down nearly 9 percent from a month ago but more than a third higher than before the war.

Japan’s benchmark stock index, the Nikkei 225, rose more than 3 percent in morning trade, the biggest hit since closing at Friday’s peak.

Mr Trump said in a press briefing on Sunday that talks with Tehran were taking place “in an orderly and prudent manner”, but advised officials “not to rush into a deal”.

Both sides need to take time and work it out. There can be no mistakes! Trump wrote on Social Truth.

Trump’s comments came after he raised hopes for a deal on Saturday by declaring that the deal was “highly negotiated,” with the terms including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

“In fact, there is no change in the bottom line, where 10-11 million barrels per day of crude oil continue to be closed every day the Strait of Hormuz remains closed,” June Goh, chief oil market analyst at Sparta in Singapore, told Al Jazeera.

“However, markets expect that the 100 million barrels of crude oil from the damaged pipelines will come out once the deal ends.”

Goh said the markets should remain calm for a while after any deal is finalized.

“Sparta estimates it will take three to six months to get everything back to normal, including the time it takes to bring production and refineries back online,” Goh said.

Iran has clamped down on the crisis since the conflict began in late February, disrupting a fifth of the world’s oil trade.

The US has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports since mid-April, further disrupting trade through the waterway.

In his Truth Social message on Sunday, Trump said the US blockade would remain “in full force until an agreement is reached, confirmed, and signed”.