Symbolic imageOil slides and shares hit records after US calls off Iran strikes
Crude prices dropped and stock markets rallied on Monday after US President Donald Trump cancelled planned strikes on Iran and said talks would resume. Tehran denied his account of a Monday start.
What happened
- Germany's Dax passed its early-July record of 25,900.10 points, rising up to 1.5 percent to 26,010.56 on Monday.
- Brent for October delivery fell as much as 7.3 percent to $81.55 a barrel; WTI dropped over 5 percent to $79.47.
- Trump wrote late on Saturday that Iran and other states had asked for time to complete a Hormuz reopening deal.
- Ten-year US Treasury yields eased to 4.68 percent (Guardian) or 4.69 percent (FAZ), off last week's January high.
- Both oil benchmarks had gained more than 20 percent in July, after tanker attacks near the Strait of Hormuz.
The view from outside
Outlets outside the conflict point to a lag in the real economy: the RAC told the Guardian that UK petrol hit an Iran-war high of 160.85 pence a litre on Monday and diesel passed 180 pence for the first time since 9 June. The Hindu reports Indian markets up 1.6 percent on the same news.
What could happen next
- No confirmed date or venue for US-Iran talks after Tehran denied that negotiations would begin on Monday.
- The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported three further tanker attacks since Saturday; Hormuz traffic has slowed.
- OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to raise output, adding supply pressure independent of any diplomatic outcome.
- The Wall Street Journal reports oil falling again on Tuesday on prospects of the strait reopening.
United States: Trump says he called off what would have been the largest attack since the Second World War, partly at the request of Middle Eastern allies, and wants to test a deal.
Iran: Tehran denies Trump's claim that talks were set to begin on Monday.
Also involved