Brent Steady As Washington Nears A Deal

Brent crude oil prices slipped on Tuesday after Iran presented its proposal to resolve the decade long dispute over its nuclear program. The commodity lost 40 cents on Tuesday and traded steadily at $109.89 at 5:30 GMT on Wednesday morning.

According to Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, day one of talks in Geneva between Western lawmakers and Iranian officials were off to a good start on Tuesday. At the meeting, Iran revealed a new plan which Araqchi said “has the capacity to make a breakthrough”.

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However, CNBC reported that the US has cautioned against unreasonable expectations for a quick result as the discussions are both complex and technical. Despite the White House's warning, oil prices plummeted on the prospect of a resolution which would lift sanctions on Iranian oil. Crude prices will likely fall nearly $10 per barrel if Iran were to resume its full export capacity.

Brent prices also fell under pressure from news that US budget talks had reached another hurdle on Tuesday when the Senate announced that its fiscal negotiations had come to a halt. Now, all eyes are on the House where Republicans must come up with a proposal on how to move forward on the debt ceiling.

House Speaker John Boehner along with Senate leaders all stressed that they were doing all they could to reach a deal before the October 17 deadline. Most are expecting to see a last minute deal which will temporarily extend the country's borrowing authority and reopen the government while the two sides work out the budget issues.