The next round of talks have been postponed by a week, with both sides claiming it to be due to funeral processions. However, Araghchi is offering up a bit of a reminder as to how fragile the current understanding can be. He says that:
"Para 13 of the MoU is clear: Negotiations on final Deal will not commence if threats continue. Honor your signature."
You get the sense that Iran's objective is rather clear at this stage. And that is to keep kicking the can down the road for as long as they can. That was their modus operandi back in 2015 and it is set to be the same once again this time around.
It's been three weeks already since the memorandum of understanding was agreed to. And yet, we haven't seen any progress whatsoever in terms of talks and also with regards to how things are going with the Strait of Hormuz.
Traders and investors remain fairly calm as a whole but I would continue to urge caution especially on the way things are playing out with regards to the strait and the oil market. As mentioned yesterday:
"The current calm relies a lot on depleting inventories to keep the show going. Think of it as running down your savings just to keep up appearances that you are living a rich and lavish lifestyle."
That just isn't sustainable in the long-run.
