WTI & Brent trade around $0.60 lower apiece.....>

OIL: WTI & Brent trade around $0.60 lower apiece at writing, hampered by a heavy

session for Chinese equities, after WTI settled ~$0.50 higher on Monday, while

Brent finished ~$0.30 lower. Geopolitics were front and centre Monday, although

price action was contained, as U.S. President Trump confirmed that the U.S. will

levy fresh sanctions on Iran (including sanctions on the country's Supreme

Leader, though this is mainly superficial at this stage). Iran hit back, with

semi-official media channels criticising the U.S. approach, while the state's UN

ambassador noted that conditions are "not ripe" for a dialogue with the U.S.

Monday also saw Trump launch a Twitter tirade re: the U.S. presence in the

Strait of Hormuz, as he believes that the U.S. is currently "protecting the

shipping lanes for other countries (for many years) for zero compensation,"

However, later in the day we learnt that the U.S. was working with its allies to

preserve navigational freedom in the Gulf, a topic that will discussed by

Secretary of State Pompeo during his visit to the region.

- Monday also saw Russian Energy Min Novak note that it is still too early to

talk about an OPEC+ deal extension, acknowledging the upcoming G20 as a risk.