By Janet H. Cho
Oil company stocks are rising in late-morning trading on Monday, as Iranian negotiators suspended negotiations and investors digested the lack of progress in talks to end the Iran war.
Iranian negotiators reportedly suspended "discussions and exchanges of texts through intermediaries" because of Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon, according to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Brent crude futures, the international standard, were up 6.2% at $96.77 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate futures were rising 7% to $93.48 a barrel.
Shares of oil producers are following the commodity price higher. Exxon Mobil's stock was up 2.9% at $149.41, on track to snap a seven-day losing streak, and on pace for their largest-percent increase since May 15, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The stock traded as high as $149.59 intraday.
Chevron Corp. stock was also up 2.9% at $187.67, on pace for its largest-percent increase since March 11, and headed toward its highest close since May 22. Shares traded as high as $187.94 intraday.
Shell's sponsored American depositary receipts were up 2.2% at $85.99, on pace for its largest percentage increase since May 18.
BP's sponsored American depositary receipts were up 3.5% at $43.34, also on pace for its largest percentage increase since March 11.
The energy sector exchange traded fund known as XLE, the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR, rose 2.3% at $57.56.
The average price of a gallon of unleaded has fallen 19.5 cents over the past week, to $4.256 a gallon on Monday morning. The average diesel price has dropped 15.5 cents last week, to $5.437 a gallon.
"Much of the decline was driven by falling oil prices and the unwinding of recent price cycles, as growing optimism surrounding a potential U.S.-Iran agreement helped ease concerns over global oil supplies," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.
"However, the coast is anything but clear," he wrote. "Oil prices edged higher Sunday evening as uncertainty surrounding a potential deal persisted and renewed Israeli attacks added another layer of geopolitical risk. While motorists may continue to see some short-term relief, some price-cycling states could soon experience another upward swing as retailers run out of room to lower prices further. Overall, any setback in negotiations could quickly reverse the recent decline in fuel prices."
Since the close on Feb. 27, the Friday before the U.S. and Israeli launched their first attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, through mid-day Monday, June 1, BP's stock has risen 11.5%; the State Street Energy Select exchange-traded fund has risen 3.2%; Shell has risen nearly 3%; Chevron has risen 0.4%; and Exxon Mobil has declined 2.2%, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Write to Janet H. Cho at janet.cho@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 01, 2026 13:02 ET (17:02 GMT)
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