Oil (USO) on Solana

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz and restarting nuclear talks with the U.S. within seven days, according to the Associated Press. Before the conflict, about a fifth of globally traded oil and gas passed through the strait. The conditions go further than the blockade-for-shipping swap reported earlier in the week. Tehran wants the U.S. to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports, waive sanctions on Iranian oil sales and observe a ceasefire that includes Lebanon. Araghchi laid out the plan at a private gathering on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. Initial steps would take four to five days, the strait would reopen on day six, and talks on a final deal would begin on day seven.

The White House said U.S. officials were having "positive and constructive conversations with mediators" and that the U.S. is already "facilitating significant oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz." CBS News, citing a Wall Street Journal report, later said President Trump had rejected the proposal. The offer resembles a June arrangement that broke down soon after Iran resumed attacks on shipping.

Oil prices fell on Friday, giving back part of the previous session's rebound, after a report that U.S. and Iranian negotiators are discussing a phased deal to end the standoff in the Persian Gulf. CNBC reported that Brent crude for November delivery fell 1% to $93.66 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for November slipped 0.68% to $105.86.

A senior Iranian official told Reuters the most realistic path was for Tehran to allow shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for the U.S. ending its naval blockade. The two sides agreed to that approach in a June 17 memorandum of understanding, but it collapsed into renewed fighting soon after. Al Jazeera reported that Iran now wants the U.S. to return to the memorandum before the U.S. midterm elections. The move reflects traders taking some of the geopolitical risk premium out of crude as Gulf supply recovers and hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough grow.

Crude recovered on September 24, the day after it fell on hopes for U.S.-Iran diplomacy at the United Nations. CNBC reported that at 4:28 a.m. ET, November Brent futures were up 3.17% at $106.35 a barrel. November West Texas Intermediate had gained 2.56% to $94.52. Traders found little sign that talks were moving toward a diplomatic end to the Middle East conflict. At the UN General Assembly, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian blamed the U.S. and Israel for stoking global instability. He said Iran had been "the victims of terrorism" and would keep fighting "until our last breath." Merchant ships also remain anchored in the Strait of Hormuz.

Asian demand added to the move. Kpler data cited in the report shows Asia on course to import 23.96 million barrels per day of crude in September. That is up from 23.38 million bpd in August and the highest level since February, when the Iran war began. Tokenized oil products on Solana that track crude or oil-linked funds such as USO are exposed to the same geopolitical swings in the benchmark futures.