Brent slumps below $60 as Greek vote prompts stability concern
Brent slid below $60 a barrel for the first time since April amid speculation Greece’s rejection of austerity measures will prompt its exit from the euro area. Futures dropped as much as 1.6 percent in London, falling for a second day. Sixty-one percent of voters backed Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s rejection of further spending cuts and tax increases. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry tempered expectations that a nuclear deal with Iran is imminent as diplomats meeting in Vienna work toward a Tuesday deadline. Oil last week slumped the most since March amid speculation the Greek crisis threatens Europe’s economic stability and growth, prompting investors to eschew riskier assets. Iran, the fourth-largest member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, has estimated it could double crude exports from about 1 million barrels a day within six months of sanctions being lifted. “We’ve seen a bit of a capitulation in oil,” Ric Spooner, a chief analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney, said by phone. “The situation in Greece has a confidence impact on demand. A nuclear agreement with Iran represents a negative risk event for oil in terms of the possible significant increase in supply.”