Oil prices tumbled, and stocks soared on Monday after the United States and Iran said they had reached a deal to end their war that will reopen the Strait of Hormuz, sending a wave of relief through global markets.
The two sides confirmed an announcement from mediator Pakistan, with a signing ceremony set to take place in Switzerland on June 19, bringing an end to three months of conflict that has sent energy prices soaring and revived fears of another inflation spike.
The Strait a vital maritime chokepoint through which roughly 20 per cent of the world’s crude oil supply transits was effectively closed by Tehran soon after US-Israel strikes on Iran launched the conflict.
“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” US President Donald Trump wrote on social media Sunday as he marked his 80th birthday.
I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz,” he added. “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi then said the deal put an “immediate end” to the war, with talks on a “final agreement” due within two months.
The content of the agreement, which follows weeks of fraught negotiations and periodic threats from Trump of fresh hostilities, remained unclear.