NEW YORK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices settled lower on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the country will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, a landmark agreement signed in 2015.

In a televised speech, Trump announced the exit, adding he will not sign the waiver of nuke-related sanctions against Iran.

Trump repeated his tough stance on the deal, saying it had failed to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons or supporting terrorism in the region.

However, he did not specify the time frame and the scale of the sanctions to be restored.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude oil plunged more than 4 percent before Trump's announcement, but pared losses after the president's speech.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for June delivery lost 1.67 U.S. dollars to settle at 69.06 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for July delivery erased 1.32 dollars to close at 74.85 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.