Oil prices tumbled Wednesday for the third straight day, as a flurry of headlines from the Middle East sparked renewed optimism in global markets.
\n\nAs of early Wednesday morning, U.S. crude oil had fallen more than 1.5% to around $81 per barrel and had earlier slipped as low as $79 per barrel for the first time since Aug. 13.
\n\nInternational oil benchmark Brent was also down around 2% and trading at just under $86 per barrel.
\n\nDriving the moves in oil were a trio of headlines over the past 24 hours that, taken together, could signal a shift in how both Tehran and Washington are approaching the war after six months.
\n\nThe first development was the renewal of talks between Iran and Oman about reopening the critical Strait of Hormuz, reported by Reuters.
\n\nThe U.S. State Department is also preparing to return American diplomats to their posts at embassies across the Middle East, according to The New York Times.
\n\nAnd Secretary of State Marco Rubio told U.S. allies that the Trump administration does not expect to resume military strikes on Iran, according to comments reported by Axios.
\n\nPaul Donovan, the global chief economist for UBS Wealth Management, sounded a cautiously…
Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business
