Reuters has reported that the remaining parties to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal plan to meet on Friday at 1300 GMT to adjourn talks on salvaging the deal, three diplomats said on Thursday.

''The indirect US-Iran talks on bringing both back into full compliance with the deal are in their seventh round. One of the diplomats said they were due to resume on Dec. 27, while another gave a time frame between Christmas and the New Year.''

The news agency has explained that ''under the agreement, Iran had limited its nuclear program in return for relief from U.S., European Union and United Nations economic sanctions.''

Marke implications

Iran has been the wild card for the oil markets before Omicron came along. However, an unconstrained return of Iranian barrels remains a significant downside risk for the new year.