Oil futures: Brent eases ahead of last-ditch Iran talks, lower China imports

London (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) – Crude futures have eased Monday, with prices little changed in Europe during the day, after softening in Asian trading hours amid talk on reviving Iran's nuclear deal and news of lower Chinese crude imports.

Brent futures for front-month August were trading at $71.52/barrel (1430 GMT), compared to Friday's settle of $71.89/b and down 0.5%.

At the same time July WTI was trading $69.28/b, down from Friday's settle of $69.62/b.

The latest round of Iranian talks restart in Vienna on June 10 in an attempt to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, seen as a last chance to reach an agreement that lifts US sanctions on oil, shipping and banking ahead of Iran's elections the following week.

If a deal is not reached, analysts say talks are likely to be delayed until after the expected new government takes control in August.  

"The Iran nuclear deal seems someway off and OPEC is maintaining a cautious approach to supply, which has allowed traders to turn their focus back to demand," said Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ, commenting of the previous two-weeks of gains.

Meanwhile, Chinese imports of crude oil totalled 9.65 million bpd in May, down 1.7% on the month as a mixture of refinery maintenance and a seasonal slowdown took its toll.

April imports, according to data published by China Customs, reached 40.1 million mt of crude, taking to the total imported so far this year to 220.5 million mt (10.65 mpd).

COVID-19 cases continue to fall in India, although Taiwan is to extend curbs in a bid to tackle the current outbreak.