Crude oil futures dipped slightly on Monday (April 22) after Iran stated it would not escalate the conflict with Israel.

By the close of trading on April 22, WTI crude oil contracts fell by 29 cents to $82.85 per barrel. Brent crude oil contracts dropped 29 cents to $87 per barrel. Both oil contracts lost 3% last week, but have risen nearly 16% and 13% respectively since the beginning of the year.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told NBC News that the country has no plans to retaliate against Israel's attack on April 19.

Amirabdollahian said, "As long as Israel does not take new actions against our interests, we will not have any new responses."

Investors overlooked concerns that the tit-for-tat attacks between Iran and Israel might escalate into war, with market focus likely shifting back to fundamental supply and demand factors this week.

Tamas Varga, an analyst at PVM, commented: "The market's reaction to rising geopolitical tensions in the region is another example of how the expectation of a sharp increase in oil prices in the event of a disruption in the Strait of Hormuz or if Saudi Arabia is directly drawn into the conflict is reasonable."

Source: Vietstock