By Myra P. Saefong and Barbara Kollmeyer

The U.S. government on Friday urged nonemergency government workers to leave Israel

The U.S. State Department on Friday urged nonemergency U.S. workers to leave Israel after talks over Tehran’s nuclear program ended Thursday without a deal.

Oil prices finished Friday at their highest level in roughly seven months, as President Donald Trump reportedly suggested that a U.S. military strike on Iran is still being considered following a failed attempt this week to reach a deal to end Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

Trump told reporters outside the White House Friday that he would “love not to use” the U.S. military to attack Iran, but “sometimes you have to,” according to a report from CNBC.

The report also said that a final decision on whether to attack Iran has not yet been made. An emailed request to the White House from MarketWatch for further comment on Iran wasn’t immediately answered.

Oil prices finished higher Friday in the wake of Trump’s reported remarks. April West Texas Intermediate crude (CLJ26) (CL.1) rose 2.8% to settle at $67.02 a barrel – its highest finish since Aug. 1. The contract gained 0.8% for the week and rose 2.8% for the month of February, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

April Brent crude (BRNJ26) climbed 2.5% to settle at $72.48 a barrel, the highest since July 31. The contract gained 1% for the week and 2.5% for the month.

The oil market is providing a reminder that until “documents are signed and money changes hands, there is no deal,” Colin Cieszynski, portfolio manager and chief market strategist at SIA Wealth Management, told MarketWatch.

The Oman-mediated talks between the U.S. and Iran in Geneva ended on Thursday with “significant progress,” Badr Albusaidi, Oman’s foreign minister, said in a post on X Thursday. He said talks would resume after “consultation in the respective capitals,” with the two sides holding “technical level” discussions next week in Vienna.

“Talks are extending into another week, but ironically, the longer they go on, the higher oil prices seem to go. This is because the markets are sensing that the Iranians could be stringing [President] Trump along and at one point, Mr. Trump may lose his patience and tell his negotiators to come home,” Edward Meir, an analyst at Marex, said in comments emailed Friday morning.

“At the end of the day, it should not take weeks and weeks to come to an agreement and the markets are getting nervous waiting,” Meir added.

Read: U.S.-Iran nuclear talks end, but with hope that negotiations continue. That still leaves the oil market in limbo.

Congressional Democrats are expected to force a vote on a war powers resolution linked to Iran next week, in a bid to prevent Trump from taking military action against Iran without the prior approval of Congress.

Friday saw the U.S. State Department authorize nonemergency U.S. government personnel and their family members to leave Israel “due to safety risks,” which weren’t specified. The order also warned of potential restrictions on travel to areas of Israel, the Old City of Jerusalem and the West Bank, while suggesting “persons may wish to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights are available.”

Trump has said the U.S. military has assembled an armada of warships and fighter jets near Iran.

David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, said markets are also focused on the meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies on Sunday. There has been speculation that members may resume production increases starting in April, he said, after the group decided to leave output quotas unchanged for the first quarter of 2026.

“While OPEC+ estimates that supply and demand will be in balance throughout this year, the International Energy Agency maintains its forecast of an oversupply of 3.7 million barrels per day throughout 2026,” Morrison said in a note to clients.

-Myra P. Saefong -Barbara Kollmeyer

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02-27-26 1522ET

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